Omniscience
by SilverShadow123
Summary: From its position and vastness, it makes sense that the sky, had it eyes, could see and know all. Sawada Tsunayoshi—although "No Good", academically challenged, and athletically lacking—is someone who personifies the sky. After all, the sky has always been such a constant that those under it have often taken it for granted... forgotten that it is always there to watch over them.
1. Lucky Bond

_**AN: This is my first KHR fic. It's Semi-AU.**_

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN KATEKYO HITMAN REBORN. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TO AKIRA AMANO AND ALL APPLICABLE OWNERS OF THE MANGA/ANIME.**

EDITED: 8 Oct. 2016  
\- I combined Chapter 1 and part of Chapter 2 into this

EDITED: 23 May 2017  
\- Just fixed some grammatical errors here and there

* * *

**OMNISCIENCE**

**Arc I: Childhood Days**

**Chapter 1: Lucky Bond**

* * *

"For all the things my hands have held, the best by far is you." ~ Andrew McMahon

* * *

_October 14, (Year Zero)  
12:00 a.m.  
Namimori General Hospital_

The moment the clock struck midnight, the wails of a newborn child pierced the air. A handful of nurses took the baby away to wash off the excrement that coated its small body. Meanwhile, doctors and midwives fussed over a twenty-year-old brunette who breathed heavily as she continued to bleed.

A pair of dark, narrowed eyes watched the medical personnel that attended to the baby. When the owner of those eyes saw and sensed, with his diluted Hyper Intuition, that there was no threat to his child, Sawada Iemitsu returned his full attention to the woman who laid on the medical bed. She gripped his hand tightly as another contraction hit her in order to dislodge the placenta. Iemitsu resisted the urge to pull away his cramped hand. Idly, he wondered how the Ninth could have possibly gone through this ordeal thrice.

The blond shifted his hand discreetly when his beautiful wife, Nana, finally relaxed and caught her breath. He watched as the doctor frowned and turned to a midwife. The man gestured towards the placenta on a surgical tray and then towards Nana, an action that caused worry to spike in Iemitsu's heart.

The doctor noticed the apprehension on the man's face and smiled reassuringly. "Iemitsu-san, we're going to need to take a few visual documentations of Nana-san's vaginal opening, hymen, and uterine wall. We've spotted some issues with the delivery but we aren't sure yet, so further examination is necessary."

As odd as it was to hear a man asking permission to take pictures of your wife's vagina, Iemitsu knew that this man was a professional and only had his patients' best interests at heart (unlike that damn Shamal). With his free hand, he removed the surgical mask that covered half of his face and glanced at his wife. When he saw a barely perceptible nod, he turned his gaze to the doctor. "Do what you need to do, sensei."

When the medical personnel moved to do their jobs, the man turned to his wife once more and a bright grin stretched across his face. He knew that even though she gave her consent, she was still uncomfortable with the situation.

"You did it, Nana," he whispered reverently. "You did it. You gave birth to our first child."

Nana hummed weakly in reply, her eyelids closed in exhaustion, and her long brown hair splayed over her pillow in disarray. Her flushed face showed just how much effort she had exerted during the delivery. "I… didn't think it would be… so difficult," she took a deep breath then opened her eyes, and Iemitsu was immediately captivated, as usual. "I'm… so happy… you're here, anata."

Iemitsu's grin skilfully hid the guilt he felt and he gently kissed his wife.

The truth was that he almost could not make it. He and the Ninth, after the latter had checked up on Vongola's Japanese branch stationed in Tokyo, were to leave for Italy yesterday. Just as their private jet was to take off, Iemitsu received a call that announced that Nana had gone into labour. For five whole minutes, he sat there in shock, torn between his desire to be there for his wife and soon-to-be-born child, and his duty as the boss of CEDEF. He barely managed to stutter out an explanation to the Ninth's concerned inquiry when the old man kicked him out of the jet and _ordered_ him to stay with his family until further notice.

Left in shock for a moment at being left in the dust (quite literally), it took a while for him to finally high tail out of there. He managed to stop a car owned by the Vongola before it left and requested (bribed) the driver to give it to him. Then he drove as if the devil were after him. He only paid the traffic laws the minimal amount of attention necessary so the police would not catch him.

(Reborn would never let him live it down if the police caught _him_ of all people.)

Somehow, he managed to get to Namimori a few hours before midnight, and now here they were.

"What should we name him?" Nana softly asked as her fair complexion steadily returned.

"Whatever you want," Iemitsu immediately replied. He tried not to think about how he was not there for the majority of Nana's pregnancy or how they were supposed to think of names for their son or daughter _together_. "I'm sure it'll be wonderful. You thought of it, after all."

Nana's cheeks heated up as she let out a breathless giggle. Her husband always said the most romantic things. However, before she could reply, a tired yet cheery voice called out to the young couple.

"Congratulations, Nana-san, Iemitsu-san. You have a very healthy baby boy. Well, he's a little on the small side, but it's nothing to be worried about."

The young parents were struck speechless with the realisation that they were about to receive their child. They did not notice when the doctor and midwives finished their business and filed out. They did not notice the frown on the doctor's face as he spoke with a nurse.

Their attention was completely riveted on the midwife that carefully walked towards them, a tiny blue bundle in her arms.

Nana had, at the entrance of the midwife, attempted to sit up and managed to do so with the help of her husband. Both waited anxiously as the midwife approached. She smiled at them softly as she handed the child to his mother. "You have a very cute son, Nana-san. Very well behaved too, for a newborn. He cried a bit while we were cleaning him but calmed down soon enough."

Iemitsu and Nana only half-listened to the woman, their thoughts occupied by the baby nestled in his mother's arms where he continued to sleep peacefully while puffs of breath escaped his button nose every second or so. He had a wrinkled forehead, chubby cheeks, and tiny clenched fists tucked under his chin. Soft lashes peeked out of his eyelids and a tuft of smooth, light brown hair rested upon the crown of his head. Iemitsu raised a hand that subtly shook and lightly touched one of the baby's fists, amazed at how _small_ it was when compared with his finger. He tilted his head towards his wife and smiled as she cooed at the baby.

"He looks like you," he teased her.

She blushed. "D-Don't be silly, anata. I think he looks a lot like you."

"No way! Look, he's got your hair!"

"Yes, but–"

Nana's breath caught in her throat when she felt their baby shift. Both parents simultaneously looked at their son just in time to see his eyes open. They were unbelievably wide, their size emphasised every time he blinked sleepily, and a deep hazel colour. His dark lashes, though few in number, framed them adorably.

Iemitsu always thought Nana's eyes entranced him to no end. He now wholeheartedly believed his son's eyes would be the death of him.

He managed to speak first. "See, he even has your eyes," he whispered, and he felt somewhat foolish at the thought that if he spoke any louder the moment would be broken.

Nana simply nodded absentmindedly, captured by her son's sleepy gaze. "Un, I guess, but… darling, I think his eye colour came from your side of the family," she replied with an ecstatic smile.

The Young Lion returned the gesture, pleased. Though he adored Nana's wide, brown eyes, there was something incredibly ego stroking about their child inheriting his genes. The thought of their son with the shape of his mother's eyes and his own eye colour made him feel proud beyond words.

He promised to protect the innocence that shone in those eyes for as long as he could.

A gurgle of happiness broke the silence that had descended upon them. The baby's eyes flickered back and forth between the man and the woman, as though he could already see them, even though that was impossible. His chubby cheeks lifted into a semblance of a smile as he displayed red, toothless gums. He raised his small fists and moved them stiffly. Both parents gave each other radiant smiles then proceeded to hold one fist each.

In their happiness, they did not notice the grave look their doctor wore as he watched them from outside the room. The midwife who brought in the baby sent him a worried look to which he merely shrugged. He sighed in resignation before he steeled himself, opened the door, and entered the room.

"Iemitsu-san, Nana-san, I need to speak to you about something. It's about the results of your delivery."

It was always terrible to be the bearer of bad news, especially on such a joyous occasion. As the doctor saw the happiness seep out of the young couple, as he watched the woman tightly clutch her baby to her chest and suppress her tears, and as the man before him took on a devastated expression…

He felt like the worst scum on earth.

* * *

"I… see. That's very unfortunate…"

'_I know it is,'_ Iemitsu could not help but think bitterly, but he pushed the emotion away when his mind registered his boss' genuinely regretful tone. "Yeah, the doctor said the delivery ruptured her birth canal and… yeah. He said that if she got pregnant again and had to go through the same thing she… might not make it next time. She lost more blood than she should have as it is, apparently," he sighed into his phone then looked up and down the hallway he stood in. Though he spoke in Italian, a language virtually no Namimori native knew how to speak, one could never be too sure in his line of work.

"Iemitsu…"

He forced out a laugh. "Well, it's not like Nana and I didn't expect something like this to happen! I mean, whenever we—or just Nana, really—went to a doctor's appointment, they always said that her body wasn't… compatible… with the baby..."

Timoteo allowed time for his Outside Advisor to regain his composure. His next words were careful and his tone calculated, akin to the voice one used when one had to approach a cornered animal. "… What do you plan to do now?"

Iemitsu frowned. His Intuition's warning bells made his gut twist into uncomfortable knots. "What do you mean, Nono?"

"Our agreement—"

"Apologies for speaking out of turn, sir, but our _agreement_ states that my first-born would come back with me to Italy and be trained to become the next Boss of CEDEF when he or she was old enough," he interceded in a clipped tone. "Any child I have with Nana afterwards would be left with her and out of the Mafia." He took a deep breath and rubbed his face in agitation. "With all due respect, Nono… I don't think that's possible anymore. And you know I can't leave Nana _alone_. He's her son too! I can't… I can't take that away from her…" His eyes shone with pain.

The Ninth sighed. He understood his Outside Adviser's dilemma, however—"What do you propose we do, then? You do not wish to involve Nana any more than necessary, so bringing her here to Italy with your son is not an option," he stated logically. "However, that does not change the fact that a successor for your position needs to be found."

"I know, okay, I _know_," Iemitsu replied in frustration. He closed his eyes in thought and wracked his brain for the best possible solution. In this situation, not every one of them can come out happy, but at the very least most of them can be able to. He opened his eyes and his face took on a tentative and resigned look. "How about this: I'll come back to Italy and look through the CEDEF recruits. I'll take one of them on as a student and—"

"Iemitsu," the Ninth interrupted softly. "If you do that, you will not have enough time for your family. Your son…" He trailed off.

"… I know," he answered sombrely. He rubbed his face again. "Listen, Nono, I'll settle the rest of the details with you later. Nana… Nana needs me right now. I didn't exactly leave her in the best condition…"

"Of course. I understand. I wish you the best, Iemitsu, and… for what it's worth… I'm sorry."

Iemitsu did not respond to the empty platitude and merely hung up. He knew, especially being a Mafioso, that an apology could not bring back what was lost. In this situation, an apology from anyone, no matter how great they were, would be worth nothing.

* * *

Nana wiped away her tears. She attempted to hum a tune to her son as she held him in her arms. If she were not so depressed, she would have smiled at how she held the child, as if he were her life jacket and the only thing that kept her afloat.

After they received the news, a few nurses assisted with her clean up before they moved her to a nicer room they had reserved for her. She had, at her doctor's suggestion, breastfed her son and burped him. He had just fallen back into a peaceful slumber when her love entered the new room.

She gave him a watery smile, thankful that it did not take too long for him to collect himself before he came back for her, as he pulled up a chair to sit next to her bed. She mentally noted how tense and weary he looked even through his smile. Nana kissed his cheek, pleased by how he marginally relaxed and how his grin turned a little more genuine. Her husband was so silly sometimes what with the way he tried to hide his pain from her. Although she loved him for that. It always seemed as if he would carry the weight of the world if only to protect her and keep her happy.

"Nana…" Iemitsu started softly. "I got in touch with my boss a while ago and…" He hesitated and struggled with the best way to phrase his next words. He sighed in aggravation. "… Something came up in work," he finally said and his smile became strained. "I might need to go back soon."

Nana blinked. "Oh…" Her smile faltered as the warmth in her eyes subdued. "That's… oh. Well, I… I'm happy you got to see our child, at least. When are you coming back?"

He hesitated again. "Dear, you see… things are getting a lot more hectic back at work. I might not… get to come home for… long periods of time," he finished lamely.

His wife looked at him, her eyes filled with mixed emotions. He suppressed a shiver, uncomfortable with the look she bestowed upon him.

Nana did not know what to feel. Anger? Sadness? Apathy?

Pain?

Then she took in her husband's tired visage beneath all his bravado. She gazed into his eyes, saw his veiled guilt, and found that all she felt was resignation. She was not the only one that felt hurt by their situation. She could not afford to be the selfish one. He never offered information about his job and she never asked. For a while now, she has had the impression that he was involved in something dangerous with how secretive he was about it… but she never confronted him because she was (is) scared of things changing.

These thoughts had always been the ones she turned to whenever her husband's job inevitably strained their relationship. However, this was not just about her anymore.

She looked at their baby. Their small, fragile son would only have one parent and she was not even certain of her capabilities as a mother, let alone as a single parent. She did not believe she was strong enough to handle it.

The smile Nana gave Iemitsu was small and tight, though it was neither bitter nor happy. "What about…"

Iemitsu slowly moved to sit on her bed so he could hold her and their child close to him. "When we got married," he murmured and his serious gaze halted whatever his wife was about to say, "I promised you I'd keep you safe, no matter what… and I'm going to do that and more. I'll keep our _family_ safe. Just… I just want you to know that… this is me, _keeping_ that promise. Please understand."

She melted into her husband's embrace. A few tears leaked from her eyes and then they ceased. "Then, can you promise to come and visit whenever you can? He… He needs his father…"

"Of course!" He replied immediately, greatly relieved that this talk had gone smoother than he imagined. "If I couldn't do at least that, then I couldn't call myself a man, right?"

She laughed lightly at that, a soft bell-like sound that Iemitsu loved. The family of three snuggled together even more. All was quiet; the only sounds heard were their nearly silent breaths and a toddler's cute noises as they enveloped him in blankets and warmth.

"It's early morning," Iemitsu murmured.

"Mm-hm."

"… Can I hold him?"

Nana blinked. She shifted a bit before she looked up at her husband with a smile. "Ara? I thought you'd never ask." She held out the bundle in her arms to him. "Be careful with his head. You have to hold it up because he can't do it on his own yet."

Iemitsu could not quite suppress his grin as he accepted his son and did as told. He always knew his wife would make a great mother.

Nana looked on as the man she loved cradled their little gift. For all his flaws, her husband was overly protective of his family and loved them with all of himself. She never thought she could love him any more than she already did but as she watched him now, awed at the fact that he was a father while he claimed that she would be the best mother in the world…

Love did not sound strong enough to describe what she felt anymore. For the first time in a long time, she felt happy, content even… and she had their child to thank for that.

She smiled lightly at the thought. She was happier to have him now, especially since Iemitsu would be gone from home even longer than before. She did not like being alone. She found it sweet, really. Their child was like a perfect blend between her and her husband. She could see, even at this point, how his hair was a shade lighter than her own was, and she knew his eyes would always remind her of her husband's when she grew forlorn for him. Not to mention that there was enough of her in his features to make her happy at any given time. It was as if he represented their bond, that even though Iemitsu was miles away she had a piece of their love with her always.

_'Bond…'_ She thought about it, then said aloud, "Ne, anata. Do you think we can name him… Tsunayoshi?"

Iemitsu blinked. "Tsunayoshi?" he asked as he tested it out. "Why that, Nana? Err… not that I don't like it!" He added hastily. "I just want to know why?"

"Oh! It's just that I was looking through your family tree one day and I noticed that it's sort of a tradition to name the children after Tokugawa Shoguns," Nana replied airily. "I just wanted to continue it since it looked nice, and I've grown to adore the name 'Tsunayoshi'."

"Well… if that's the case then I don't see why not!" He proclaimed. He felt embarrassed of how highly his wife thought of his side of the family to honour them. "Sawada Tsunayoshi. Ohh, it even has a nice ring to it! Great job, honey!"

The young woman smiled lightly in response. The reason she gave was only part of why she wanted to name their child that. She did not want to state her other reason out of slight embarrassment. She also knew that if Iemitsu found out, he would feel more guilty and troubled, and she did not want that. It would just distract him from his work.

She reached out and brushed her fingertips against Tsunayoshi's hair. Her eyes and smile were warm and filled with love. It was a good name, she mused.

"He can be 'Tsuna', for short, since the name's a mouthful," the young mother said with a tone of finalisation. "Or Tsu-kun," she added thoughtfully. Her husband grinned at the adorable nickname for their adorable son and nodded eagerly, words inadequate to express how much he loved this little moment and how much he wished it would last forever.

Their "lucky bond".

'_We love you, Tsu-kun.''_

* * *

_January 8, (Year One)  
3:43 a.m.  
Sawada Household_

Nana woke to the cries of her three-month-old child on a cold, empty bed. She rubbed her eyes as she sat up then stood to make her way to a white crib. Tsu-kun, oddly enough, rarely ever cried and usually slept through the night. She grew concerned about this and brought her child to a professional but the doctor claimed that her baby was perfectly healthy. She instead advised the young mother to be grateful to have a well-behaved child as not all parents get to have such peaceful nights.

Parents. Nana entertained the thought that Tsu-kun behaved this way because he knew how difficult this was for her without Iemitsu. The sentiment warmed her heart. After all, Tsu-kun had not been this silent the first week after he was born. The restful nights only began after his father left for work.

Though that did not mean her child was silent all the time. Tonight, it seemed, was one of his sleepless nights.

She leaned into the crib, picked up her baby, and cradled him to her chest. His fidgets gradually slowed and his sniffles became few and far in between, but the tears that ran down his cheeks persisted. She felt a pang in her heart. Tears did not suit her child, the woman decided. She rocked him in her arms and hummed as she walked around the room. She inspected the lion beanie on his head, one her husband bought to keep him warm, and saw it was still secure. She inspected the mittens on his hands and feet and saw the same thing. She reluctantly sniffed his diaper and breathed a sigh of relief when she smelled that it did not need to be changed and she knew he was not hungry since he ate a lot before bed. She felt stumped.

Then Tsu-kun's tears ceased as his eyes widened and Nana stopped in her tracks. The moonlight from the window bathed the both of them in a gentle luminescence, her son evidently entranced by the sight. Nana wiped away the tear tracks from his soft, chubby cheeks. The baby moved his head and gurgled in protest, but did nothing more when she stopped her ministrations. She cooed at the sound and wondered why the moonlight had calmed him. She looked around and caught sight of her child's crib surrounded by shadows.

"Oh Tsu-kun," Nana sighed, now with a good idea as to what scared the baby. She turned herself so that the both of them could look out the window and into the night sky. Stars twinkled brightly in the distance and the child made a happy sound as he raised his mitten-covered fists to reach for the sky.

"You shouldn't be so afraid of the dark, Tsu-kun," she admonished him gently. The newborn tilted his head. His mother giggled and kissed his forehead as he yawned sleepily.

She smiled warmly. "Did you know? Stars shine the brightest in the dark."

* * *

Nana knew what the neighbours thought of her, both the good _and_ the bad.

She is a citizen of Namimori but she was not born or raised here. She thinks Iemitsu was because he seemed attached to the town and almost everyone knew him.

She held nothing against the townspeople as they _had_ given her a warm welcome when she arrived with Iemitsu and he announced that they were married. The people were very kind.

That did not change the fact that she knew almost everyone pitied her.

She can understand them to an extent. She knew the whispers of 'absent father', 'single parent', 'housewife', '_trophy_ wife', already said much of what they thought of her situation. She just could not understand why some scorned her and she did not wish to understand; she preferred to resign herself to blissful ignorance. She was not blind. It was simply easier to ignore the opinions of others if she pretended obliviousness.

It was not her fault she had the chance to marry Iemitsu. She feels lucky to have met the sweet, understanding man at all. She understood that, though many of the women she met were kind, many still envied her luck. What she could not understand was why they would not just move on and see that there were many other people out there willing to make them happy. As great as her husband was, he was still only one man among billions.

Even if what you receive is not what you wanted, it did not mean you could not be content or even happy with what life has dealt you. She would make sure to teach that to Tsu-kun.

* * *

_January 25, (Year One)  
10:00 a.m._

Nana blinked when she heard the doorbell ring. She set aside the blocks she held and smiled fondly when her child crawled to the toys eagerly. She dusted off her grey lounge pants as she stood up and made her way to the door. When she opened it, she faced a medium-sized cardboard box and a deliveryman who struggled with its contents. He had a clipboard precariously balanced on top of the box and, when he met her eyes, he offered her a professional smile.

"Are you Sawada Nana-san?"

"Yes…?"

"Package from Sawada Iemitsu, miss. If you would just sign here," he gestured with his chin to the clipboard, "to show you've received the package. All other expenses are paid for."

Nana did as requested and directed the man to leave the box on her living room floor. He did so in front of the curious yet shy gaze of a toddler.

Minutes later, the deliveryman was gone and the young woman sat cross-legged on the floor. Her son squirmed in her lap as he tried to reach the cardboard box in front of them. She decided she was being hesitant for no reason at all and placed her son to the side so he could entertain himself with the toys scattered throughout the room. She then proceeded to pry open the box with her fingers rather than take out a box cutter or scissors since a very curious baby crawled around the vicinity. When she opened the box, she let out a breathless gasp.

Her husband had filled the box to the brim with numerous kitchenware that ranged from non-stick pots and pans to an entire wooden block of assorted knives. The majority of the utensils were made of hard stainless steel while others were made of darkly coloured and thick plastic. Piled together at the sides were various cookbooks that looked to contain recipes from all sorts of cultures. The sight of it all pleasantly surprised her. She spoke to Iemitsu once about her need for new kitchenware and mentioned a desire to learn new recipes as an afterthought. It had slipped her mind the past months and she smiled widely at the realisation that he remembered.

As the last thought struck her mind, her eye caught a small piece of paper, folded in two, on top of all the gifts. She eagerly snatched up the paper and opened it and she beamed as she read the simple note written by her love.

_Happy Anniversary Nana. Tell our little Tuna-fishy Papa says 'Hi.'_

Nana hugged the letter to her chest. She blushed prettily and softly sighed. She did not know where the "Tuna-fishy" came from but it was cute and the entire package was just proof that her husband had not forgotten them. She gently placed the letter on the floor and looked around the room before she leaned towards Tsu-kun and grabbed him by his armpits. She settled him back on her lap as her dainty hands gently held his arms as they flailed about.

"Tsu-kun," she murmured. "Papa says 'Hi'."

The little baby turned his head to look up at her with eyes the same colour as his father's eyes. His mouth stretched as he mimicked a smile, red gums displayed proudly, and gurgled. Nana gave him a long-suffering smile as saliva dribbled down his chin.

* * *

_March 31, (Year One)_

Nana had a terribly stressful day. Her day started with a son that wailed at some ungodly hour in the morning and then refused to return to slumber. Then she had to feed the both of them when the sun came up and ready herself. She had to go to the town bank to settle her joint account with Iemitsu since so many anonymous donations came in (though not exactly anonymous, as she was reasonably certain it was her husband being secretive, as usual). Then she and Tsu-kun had lunch out before they set off once more to go grocery shopping. (It was long due anyways, Tsu-kun went through his diapers much too quickly.)

While at the market, she bumped into a pair of her husband's High School friends. She would have accepted the invitation for tea but realised that Tsu-kun was not comfortable with strangers yet, as the child was too quiet during their conversation, so she declined. A pity, but she promised to come over when Tsu-kun was older and less shy. They also had a son around Tsuna's age, a fact that made Nana ecstatic. Sadly, they had left the child at home with a babysitter.

The Yamamoto couple were such nice people. Nana wondered if she and Iemitsu could have been like them, if he were around more often, or if the Yamamoto's son was anything like Tsu-kun.

She returned home and went through the rest of her day deep in thought. She managed to breastfeed her son with the same absentmindedness until his mouth clamped around her nipple. The pain jolted her away from her thoughts. She blinked in hurt confusion before she saw something white poke out of one of his gums. Her son was teething! That meant she would have to buy baby bottles soon. She did not want him to bite her off.

Late at night, with her son peacefully asleep, she tiredly laid in bed and ran through her day in her head. She was surprised to realise that today was, in fact… her birthday. She had been so busy that she never noticed or bothered to think about the date…

Nana buried herself into the covers of the bed she was supposed to share with a husband who was not there. She suppressed her grief as it tried to fill her heart and reminded herself that being a single parent was supposed to be lonely and difficult. Though she felt grateful for her husband's monetary assistance, it did not stop the bitter taste of abandonment at the back of her throat. She refused to feel bitterness towards the man she loved.

She resolved to forget this ever happened. It was not as if a part of her did not expect it. Not after Valentine's Day.

* * *

_June 15, (Year One)_

She cooked Iemitsu's favourites today. After all, just because she had not heard from him in months, it did not mean that they should not celebrate his birthday.

It also did not hurt that Tsu-kun was being unreasonably adorable.

She held in a squeal as her son rolled to his stomach, then to his side, then to his back, then to his other side, then rolled all around the room as he followed her. She smiled widely as she took pictures and videos of him.

Tsu-kun looked at his feet as if they were the most interesting thing in the world. He brought them up to his face and tucked his arms beneath his legs to keep them there to make a very good impression of a fleshy, chubby ball. He then proceeded to roll around from side to side in the same position.

Nana could not hold her giggles back anymore; she was glad she managed to video the whole thing. Tsu-kun, when he heard her laugh, uncurled from his pose and sat up with a toothy grin. He raised his flabby arms and the squeal he made somehow managed to sound demanding.

The young mother smiled as she walked to her son. The toddler could not speak yet, but she knew he wanted her to carry him and she was only happy to oblige.

* * *

_October 14, (Year One)_

Blank chocolate eyes stared uncomprehendingly at a rice cooker as the water inside boiled. Nana did not want to think about it but it has been one year and she had not heard from her husband _at all_. Not since the Anniversary present in January. She feared the worst. Did he lose his job and pushed himself into a drunken stupor to try to forget everything? Did someone mug him as he walked down an alley at night? Did someone kidnap him because of something he did? Maybe his job was truly more dangerous than she initially thought and he was actually dead. He was a very secretive man so she would be surprised if anyone knew he even had a family in the first place. Maybe no one bothered to inform her of his death and maybe she was actually a widow now…

'_Or maybe…'_ Tears prickled her eyes. _'Maybe he found another woman…'_

"… Mama," an unfamiliar voice whined. The voice was small as if the owner spoke the word for the first time, and timid, as though they were not aware of what it meant. A somewhat high-pitched voice like the owner's vocal chords were still underdeveloped.

Nana recognised it as the voice of her son.

She turned around in shock at the boy who innocently sat in his high chair. When he saw that he had caught his mother's attention with that one word, Tsu-kun happily clapped his hands together. In a fit of giggles, he called out cheerily, "Mama! Mama!"

The young mother felt her eyes tear up for an entirely different reason as her hand involuntarily raised to her mouth. She walked as fast as she could to her child and picked him up before she settled him in her arms. "Oh, my…" She murmured in surprise and her voice cracked. "Your first word… Your first word–!"

"Mama!"

Nana laughed out of pure joy for the first time in what felt like forever.

* * *

_December 25, (Year One)_

Sawada Nana, the mother of one very adorable son, barely blinked when Christmas rolled around and there was still no word from her husband. Money still came in, the amount in their shared account increased every time she checked the bank. That most likely meant he was still alive and okay and that was enough for her. It had to be enough. She herself simply needed to believe in him. She has already seen so many families in both real life and TV break up because they did not trust each other enough. She did not want that to happen to her small family of three. Therefore, she chose to place her faith in her husband.

For now, Tsu-kun was more than enough for her. Just the two of them was enough. For now.

* * *

"To love somebody is not just a strong feeling—it's a decision, it's a judgement, it's a promise." ~ Bell Hooks

* * *

_**AN: This Arc is going to be long since I have to set the stage for the future Arcs. This fiction is about how I think KHR could have gone if there were more character/relationship developments simply because Tsuna was as "intuitive" as he was portrayed in canon. I already have a plan for how this Arc will go, and if some things aren't canon then I claim creative license. I'm seething a bit since I believe Nono sealing his flames contributed to Tsuna's stunted mental development. After all, the flames are made with "resolve" and sealing Tsuna's flames probably sealed away any chance he could have to be "resolved" to do much effort in anything.**_

_**\- Sora**_


	2. The Ignorance of Kuroyuri Nana

_**AN: Thank you very much to all those who favourited, followed, and reviewed my fic! Special thanks to those who favourited and followed me :P**_

**DISCLAIMER is in CHAPTER 1.**

EDITED: 8 October 2016  
\- This was part of the former Chapter 2

* * *

**OMNISCIENCE**

**Insight**

**Chapter 1.25: ****The Ignorance of Kuroyuri Nana**

* * *

"She cried.

She wanted to die.

'I'm fine.'

She lied."

~ m.g.

* * *

She never knew her mother as the woman passed away when she gave birth to her. In her early years, up until she became an adolescent, her only parental figure had been her father.

She never minded. The man was kind and gentle and always did his best to make sure she grew up into a woman that had the best of his character and, most especially and more importantly, the best of her mother. Nana always found it sweet how her father never remarried after her mother's death; that he kept true to the vows he made on the day they wed even beyond death. To her, it showed just how much he loved his wife.

It had never been "'til death do us part" with her parents and she wanted that as well.

As she grew up, she noticed that she mostly took after her mother in appearance. Her father had dark green hair and equally dark eyes while she had the brown of her mother's hair and eyes. He always joked that she got his disposition instead. Her mother always overreacted about something or another when they first met and it was only after they were well into their marriage that she mellowed out. Nana always enjoyed stories about her mother. Even though her death was an open wound, and even though her father missed his wife terribly, he never denied her the right to know how wonderful and beautiful a woman she had been.

For the first eighteen years of her life, she and her father lived together in peace. Her father had an average income, enough for the two of them, and an average home in the suburbs of Tokyo. For almost two decades, it had just been them and they had been content, even happy.

However, like all good things, it did not last.

One day, during her last year of High School, her father went to Italy to visit a few relatives and, hopefully, some old friends. The man's grey-green hair indicated just how old he had gotten and age had already begun to take its toll on his body. They knew that in a few more years he would not be able to leave the house anymore, so he decided to make one last trip to his homeland before such a thing could occur. Nana could not come with him because of her final exams and the fact that she had to decide whether she wanted to enrol in college or not. Therefore, her father flew to Italy alone.

It was on the last day of her exams that she felt that something was very wrong.

It was on the next day, the day her father was to return home, that she found out why.

(She was never quite the same after that day.)

When she opened the door to her home, she expected a man in his mid-fifties to greet her with a gentle smile on his faintly wrinkled face. Instead, she met a pair of wide blue eyes that belonged to a toddler with chin-length, dark-green hair. When the teen looked closer at the child's face, she could make out some sort of flower mark beneath their left eye. A birthmark, perhaps. The child wore a small white dress with a white coat on top of it, which made Nana conclude that the child was a girl, and she wore an orange pacifier around her neck. She also wore a white, puffy hat on her head and a tiny squirrel sat on top of it. Both human and animal looked at her curiously.

The brunette teen crouched down so the little girl would not have to strain her neck to look up at her. "Hello, little one. Are you lost? Where are your parents?"

The child smiled politely but the taller of the two felt uneasy at the meaningful and sad gaze in her eyes as she looked at her. "Hello. Are you Kuroyuri Nana?" She asked in a soft voice and the other female thought the girl sounded almost shy, as if she rarely talked to other people.

Nana blinked. "Yes, that's me." She blinked, clueless, as she pointed at herself. "But why are you looking for me?"

The little one did not react to the confirmation of her identity. It was as though she already knew the answer and only asked out of courtesy. "I am a long-distance cousin of your father's. We need to talk, so may I please come in?"

However, the older female hesitated to let a stranger inside the house. She reasoned to herself that it was a child so she could not possibly be dangerous and as she looked at her dark green hair, she recognised the shade to be similar to her father's despite the grey edges in his.

She let her in and they talked.

(She could never remember how that talk went. She only remembered numbness as the news was broken to her.)

She was stunned silent. The child, who introduced herself as Luce, was one of the distant relatives her father visited while he was in Italy. They had parted amicably but the little girl belatedly heard of an incident that occurred near the road he took to return to his hotel. She made her way there as soon as she realised the implications but…

There had been a mass shooting near that road. Some big-shot mafia family (in Italy? Those actually existed…) confronted another family of… inventors. Scientists? She could not quite register the details of the event at that time, the shock simply made her near catatonic.

Her father was dead. He had run into the fray to save a woman and her child but a shot hit him in the process. He bled out because no medic could get to him in time and the woman he saved did not know how to help him while her son had even less of an idea, and the three of them… they had been in the middle of a _Famiglia_ feud. There was no way anyone could have saved him in such circumstances.

Nana, when she heard the recount, never even thought to blame the two other victims. Her father did not raise her to hate people for what they have done, let alone for something out of their control yet… that did not change the fact that her beloved father was… _dead_.

Her stomach convulsed as the thought hit her like a bludgeon and her throat clogged up. Her confidant, her guardian, her _best friend_, gone in a matter of hours. Shot _yesterday_ and she did not even know until a _day later_ and he died _alone_… the only company he had in his last moments were two bystanders that he did not personally know so they could not comfort him. He died in _pain_.

At that, she cried. She cried for the loss of her father, a father who somehow managed to fill in the hole her mother left in her life when she died. She cried for the loss of her father who knew her and all her faults. Her father who had been there for her even when it felt like the world was against her. Her father who made her laugh and smile through her tears yet…

(No matter how much she cried that day, he did not come back to wipe her tears… and he would not again. Not anymore. She had to learn to wipe them away herself.)

Many hours and rolls of tissue later, the brunette wore herself out enough that she could finally think, little though it may be, through her grief. She still sniffled every now and then and her eyes were clearly bloodshot, but it was not as bad as when she started. She was dazedly shocked when she saw how much time had passed and even more surprised when she saw that Luce still sat in the same chair while she had a mental breakdown. Then her mind registered that there was a cup of green tea on the table. The little girl that sat across her daintily drank from her own cup, which she held in her tiny hands, so Nana idly assumed that she moved only recently.

The teen's hands shakily took the other cup of tea and drank in small increments. She pulled a fresh piece of tissue, dabbed at her eyes, and wiped her face some more to get rid of the excess moisture. "I-I'm sorry," she hiccupped. Then she unsteadily breathed out to compose herself. "I-I'm sorry you… had t-to watch m-me have a… b-break… a breakdown like th-that."

Luce gave her a soft, yet sad, smile. "It's quite alright, Nana-san. When I heard that your father…" She eyed her companion for any signs of her being overwhelmed with grief and sure enough, the teen's lower lip wobbled ever so slightly. The little one hastily moved on to what she intended to say. "I remembered from our last conversation together that he mentioned a daughter back in Japan. After the… incident… and ascertaining that his… body was, in fact, safe… I booked a flight to Japan and came here as soon as I landed to tell you. He… He would not stop talking about you. I know he loved you very, very much."

The little girl was so earnest with her words that Nana could not help but smile, as wobbly as it was. She took in a deep, uneven breath of air again. Her lungs felt heavy, they burned in her chest, and she covered her mouth to hide how she choked back a sob. "I kn-know. Thank y-you for… coming all t-this way j-just to tell me…"

They remained in silence for a long time. The teenager hiccupped and sniffled every now and then but she did her best to control what she felt and not let her sorrow engulf her once more. When her breath finally began to even out, Luce chose to speak up.

"You're taking this rather well," she commented quietly. "I actually… I presumed it would take longer to calm yourself."

Her lips involuntarily twitched into a small, sad smile. "Papa, he… sometimes, he reminded me he wouldn't a-always be around, e-especially when I started to get older. He said I should be… ready, when that time came," she flinched and realised that _this_ was the time he spoke of but he most likely never thought that it would come so soon. "He told me that… it was okay to grieve. He even said he'd haunt me if I didn't at least cry for him when he… when he leaves," she choked out a brittle laugh.

Her little companion giggled softly as well, morose as it was. "Aa, that sounds like him. Always making a joke of such serious things."

"Yes…" She looked at her hands. "But, you know… Papa also told me that even though I can grieve, I should still try to…" Her lip wobbled, "move on. He wanted me to be happy, and he said that… he said that I couldn't be happy if I spent my whole life feeling sad for what I lost… and then he'd get this affronted look on his face and he'd say—"

"'_and__ then _I'll_ be sad'_," Nana and Luce said at the same time and they shared small smiles at the camaraderie they felt.

"He would always make it sound like it would be _my_ fault if that happened, but I always knew he was joking."

The little girl was silent as she observed the other female. "… How would you like to see him off?"

"… Eh?"

"The funeral, or cremation… would you like it to be here in Japan or in Italy?"

She thought about it and pursed her lips. "… How do you think he would have liked us to send him... off? We never... We never really talked about it..." She bit her lip.

Luce hummed in thought. "I believe… he would have liked to be cremated. Where you wish him to be cremated depends on you as his daughter and as his closest living relative who is a legal adult."

The teen visibly hesitated. "I think I would like to bring the… body," she swallowed the lump that formed in her throat and ignored the burn she felt in her eyes, "back here in Japan."

The child gained a faraway look in her eyes. They widened slightly and it almost seemed as if her mouth moved of its own accord when she blurted out, "I don't want to leave you alone so soon."

Nana blinked.

"How do you feel about me living here with you? Just for a little bit until you can get yourself settled again?"

She blinked again and seriously thought about the offer. Her house held too many memories and reminders of what she had lost. She did not trust herself to be alone so soon. Who knows what isolation in her grief would bring her to do? She was only so stable now because the presence of company prompted her to collect herself much more quickly than she thought she would have had she heard of h-his… death… alone. Thus, she accepted the offer without further encouragement and they prepared everything themselves.

The cremation was a small affair. As friendly as her father was, he was also quite reclusive. Many offered her their condolences but only a few cared enough for the man to be there in person. She felt depressed at that fact, especially when one considered how he did not pass on by natural means.

Later on, she would wonder if perhaps the little girl she now called Auntie knew what she could have done if she had left her on her lonesome. She knew what _she_ could have done, especially after that awful cremation. She kept the jar of ashes in her father's bedroom and locked it.

She wanted no further reminder of how _wrong_ it all felt.

* * *

Life with Luce, though, had been a novel experience, especially for someone predominantly influenced by a male figure early in life.

(Nana would often wonder if that was how life with a mother was like.)

The little girl and her pet squirrel, Cosmo, were extremely self-sufficient and often helped the teen with the housework. Nana learned a lot from her Aunt about the best way to cook, clean, laundry, garden, etc. It was different from what her father taught her. With Luce, everything had a more feminine touch and it took much more effort to accomplish. Although, she felt grateful that the work kept her busy.

The highlights of the entire experience, however, were the times when the teen would learn new things about the infant.

Luce was secretive, like Nana's father. She seemed to wear her emotions on her sleeve but skilfully diverted personal questions. Yet, the teen noticed the little things, such as the way the child would get an odd, distant look on her face when Nana sometimes braided her long, brown hair. At that time, she asked the child what was on her mind and she merely replied that she used to have a friend with long hair and endless patience as he did the same thing every day.

The same look would appear sometimes, early in the morning as Nana made her daily cup of coffee. The infant would hop onto the counter and start to make espresso, her face full of nostalgia, as with the manner she made the drink. When the teen asked Luce to teach her how to make the espresso, the toddler got another faraway look in her eyes. When she came to there was almost something amused, mischievous, regretful, and sad about her manner all at once. Still, she laughed softly and agreed to teach her the recipe.

The distant gaze also appeared whenever Luce saw certain books, when Nana occasionally went out to jog and the child would tag along, and there was even that one time when Nana counted the money that she inherited from her father. Even in little everyday things the gaze would appear, such as when they switched to another channel on television and saw a stuntman dare to defy death. Each time the teen would ask and her Aunt would simply answer she was just reminded of an old friend.

Still, the wistful look the two-year-old sometimes bestowed upon _her_ made Nana curious enough to dig deeper. The reply she was given surprised her more than anything.

"You make me think of my daughter. She would be… hmm, fourteen years old now. I couldn't take custody of her for… personal reasons."

"Oh…" Nana felt immensely guilty to have brought up bad memories.

The infant eyed her curiously. "You're taking me having a daughter rather… well."

She blinked in return. "Why wouldn't I?"

Sky blue eyes continued to probe her until the teen shrugged.

"Papa didn't want me to end up too much like my kaa-san so he taught me to just take things in stride."

Luce only giggled at that and they never brought it up again.

It was amazing how fast the teen recovered from the news of her father's death, and Luce thought it was because she had someone to help her speed up the process.

(What Luce did not know was that her cousin brought up his daughter in such a way that she was practically sheltered from everything. Nana grew up pampered and comforted so in the event of her father's death, arguably the first time she experienced hardship in her life, she shut it out. She refused to acknowledge it. She wanted to stay ignorant. She did not want the pain.

To others, it would seem like she was strong enough to get over the traumatic event quickly but in truth she just let herself stay in a constant state of denial.

She made herself believe that if she just ignored it everything would remain fine… and no one was the wiser.)

Months later, both females believed that Nana was stable enough to re-join the world. The teen decided to forego college and got a job as a server in a nearby café.

It was there that she met the love of her life.

For him, it was love at first sight. For her… well, it took a couple more visits from Sawada Iemitsu at the café to make her think of him as someone who could possibly be more than a regular customer. She also knew that his (rather successful) attempts at courtship were a source of entertainment for her Aunt. The child never requested to meet him and the teen never pushed. Deep down, she knew that Luce would leave her soon. She only stuck around in the first place to ensure her cousin's daughter would be able to continue her life on her own. Nana knew the infant did not want to be involved in her life any more than she should. She did not know why or how she knew, she just _did_.

On their one-year anniversary of as a couple, Iemitsu proposed to her.

She was not quite sure just what both of them had in mind at that moment but he looked so earnest and he loved her so much, possibly more than she loved him. She could not help but say yes. Just when she was about to talk to her Aunt about it with the hope that maybe they could all celebrate their engagement together, the child made an announcement. That meaningful expression was back in her gaze.

"I'll be leaving for Italy tomorrow. This will be the last time we will see each other." She said it lightly, but her next words adopted a more regretful tone. "I… I will also not be keeping in touch with you."

Nana opened her mouth to protest but said nothing at the look Luce gave her. She closed her mouth and bowed her head. She had no right to protest, as she knew this day would come. The child never made any indication that their arrangement was permanent, after all.

"Nana-chan," Luce whispered, loud enough that she heard it, and the brunette looked up to meet the little one's wide blue eyes.

She smiled and said, "I'm happy for you."

Nana's eyes widened and she tried to blink away the tears that suddenly gathered there. She bit her lip.

"This is all I have wanted, and all that your father would have wanted, for you. For you to be able to live everyday feeling, 'it's great to be alive.'"

Her voice softened even more and Nana had to strain her ears to hear her next words. "One day you're going to bring someone very important to our world, so…" She smiled slyly and her eyes took on a meaningful and mischievous glint. "Don't let go of Sawada-kun. He's a keeper, dear."

The young woman did not think she ever blushed so much in her life.

(Of course, years down the road Iemitsu would constantly prove her wrong.)

She thought her Aunt's muttered words were rather cryptic but paid little mind to them. It was not a rare occurrence as Luce said similar things throughout their time together, but all the same, a part of her took note of it.

The weeks went by and again, almost everything she looked at reminded her of the little girl, and she almost felt the same way she did when her father died. She felt lost. All she wanted was stability, a constant in her life. She did not like any of the changes that occurred in her life because, so far, they only brought her pain. Hence, she did the same thing that helped her speed up her recovery process in the aftermath of her father's death.

She ignored the pain. She tried to forget the cause of it and hid everything that would remind her of the cause of that pain. She went through every day in the same manner and stayed happy. Her relationship with Iemitsu continued to grow and before she knew it, they were married. Before she knew it, years had gone by and she forgot about the little girl who acted like her mother but was not… the little girl who helped her heal but reopened the wounds in her heart when she left.

She learned to forget, to forgive, and they became the only way she knew how to deal with pain.

* * *

_October 14, (Year Two)_

Sawada Nana sighed as she fixed her son's crayons and collected the stray papers he had drawn on. She smiled at one that depicted a flower. It was pretty and a rather accurate first attempt when she considered how Tsu-kun was just two years old and did not even know what a flower was yet. It seemed as if her son had an aptitude for the arts. She would make sure to encourage him.

She picked up her baby and carried him to his high chair. He immediately brightened as she settled him into his seat and tthe toddler cheered and repeatedly slapped his hands on the table eagerly. "Mama! Eat, now?"

The young mother cooed at the action. "Hai, and it's '_Will I_ eat now', remember?"

The baby boy simply nodded enthusiastically. He was not entirely certain of what he agreed to, he just agreed to everything his mother said.

Nana's eyes glazed over as she set her own food and plates while her son's milk and baby food heated up on the stove. She thought over the life she had lived so far. Her father, her Aunt who for the life of her she could not seem to remember the name of, her lover and now husband, Iemitsu… and now her son. She shook her head and laughed to herself lightly.

It seemed as if she would always set the table for two now. She could not wait until her son grew up and brought some friends over.

* * *

"What made her strong was despite the million things that hurt her she spoke of nothing but happiness." ~ j.a.

* * *

_**AN: *blinks wide-eyed at document*… What the hell did I just do here?**_

_**So... explanations. I needed something logical as to why Tsuna was suddenly the one who inherited Giotto's blood the strongest out of all of his descendants. So I thought to myself, 'Hmm, the bloodline must have been diluted, so some new factor must have entered in order for said bloodline to be reawakened.' And voila! The answer: Nana's bloodline. So I thought about it and I was reminded of how Sepira had a family on earth even though she was of a different species. And then I thought to myself, 'Oh, and as a different species her bloodline must be something special (evidenced by her direct descendants Luce, Aria, and Yuni).' Add those together and you get... whatever this is.**_

_**If you want, you can think of it like Nana's... unique... ancestry, that I created/made up/headcanon-ed, jump-started Tsuna's dormant bloodline that came from his father's side. Which is why he looks like Primo and all that jazz. (I claim creative license.)**_

_**\- Sora**_


	3. The Trauma of Sawada Iemitsu

**DISCLAIMER is in CHAPTER 1.**

EDITED: 10 October 2016  
\- This was the former Chapter 3

EDITED: 23 May 2017  
\- Edited some stuff

* * *

**OMNISCIENCE**

**Insight**

**Chapter 1.50: The Trauma of Sawada Iemitsu**

* * *

"There are things that have to be forgotten if you want to go on living." ~ Jim Thompson

* * *

Sawada Iemitsu was only five years old when he first used the Flames that were his birthright.

(Though, at the time, they were barely flames. However, they were enough for the wrong, or right, depending on how you look at it, people to take note of him.)

He could never quite recall what happened. He could retell the story only because the Ninth told him of his own recollection of that day and he was able to fill out the rest of the details with vague impressions from his Intuition. Try as he might, he himself could never remember a single part with clarity, everything was too… fuzzy. He always thought it was because he had only been a child at the time and the trauma caused by his father's subsequent death made his mind block out the painful memories.

Sometimes, when he thought hard and long enough, he could grasp a few memories that, for him, became the catalysts of the incident. Memories that began on a normal day weeks before the event itself, in the small town of Namimori, Japan.

(*)

At the attic of the Sawada Household, Sawada Ietsuna, a brunet man with an easy-going disposition, and his son Iemitsu, an energetic little blond child, looked through the belongings of Ietsuna's grandfather and father. After the latter passed away, Ietsuna found that his old man had passed on all of their surviving family heirlooms to him. The funeral had been a miserable affair overall but Ietsuna took consolation in the fact that his father had lived a good, long life.

Now that they were mostly over the depression Ietsuna's father's death left them in, they finally decided to go through the ancient artefacts that had been in their family since a little over 350 years ago. With Ietsuna, it was inevitable that they goofed off as they looked through the various knick-knacks they found. His wife, who initially tried to help them sort through everything, eventually gave it up as a lost cause and left when her husband proved to have a mentality even younger than that of their five-year-old child.

Then, Ietsuna found a journal that belonged to his grandfather. He grinned as if he won the lottery. He directed and assisted his son as they replaced the various objects they played around with back to where they found them. Then he exuberantly ran down the attic stairs with his son in tow to show the journal to his wife.

Ietsuna loved anything and everything to do with his family's history. It was partly the reason why his son's name was what it was: he was upholding the "tradition". His wife, understandably, was not as enthusiastic about it as he was, but she was curious all the same. Therefore, the couple read the journal over the weekend.

Their son, on the other hand, was a very active child. To sit still and read ancient texts, whether they belonged to an ancestor or not, was not the way he would choose to spend his weekend. Instead, he played either with the neighbour's children or by himself, with his own toys. One day, as he did the latter option, he overheard a conversation between his parents.

"My father never believed my grandfather's claims of having Italian blood," Ietsuna commented to his wife. "He always thought we looked far too Japanese for such a claim, and he never knew my great-grandfather either so he couldn't believe it. But this book… if what it says is true, then maybe he was wrong. I mean, our son is also proof enough. He's blond!"

His wife shot him a look between annoyance and amusement, which created an interesting expression on her faintly European features. "I'm blonde too, idiot." She shook her head sadly as if she wondered why she was the one stuck with such a husband. "He could have gotten it from me, you know."

The man shot her a half-hearted glare. "Yeah, but… genetics! Blond hair is a recessive gene compared to brown hair, which means my genes should have dominated yours in our son. But it didn't, so it must mean I have a recessive trait of blond hair. And since pure Asians predominately have black or brown hair…"

"It's entirely possible for one or more of your ancestors to be foreigners," the woman finished his sentence in a mutter. She was mildly impressed as she was of the opinion the brunet she married was marginally more idiotic than most.

"Yeah! Cool, right? And, you know… this journal also has directions to my great-grandfather's grave so… I was sort of thinking that we could, maybe… go look for it?" He adopted a pleading look.

His wife stared back with an unimpressed gaze for a long moment. When she saw that he had not wavered in that time, she sighed in mock resignation. "I guess it can't be helped—"

"Yes!"

"—but you have to ask Iemitsu-kun if he wants to go."

The brunet's smile morphed into a smug smirk. "I was planning to anyways." He turned to the direction where he knew their child usually played with his toys. "Oi, 'mitsu! You wanna go on a road trip?"

The cheer the boy gave answered his inquiry.

Less than a month later, everything was ready. They rented an RV and stocked up on food and gasoline as neither wife nor husband knew how long it would actually take to find the grave. Likewise, clothes, toiletries, and the like were also gathered and the vehicle became something one could almost call a home away from home. On the day they were to depart, the wife and mother of the family announced that she had no intention of going with them. Her proclamation was met with loud protests from both Sawada males.

"But Kaa-san!" Iemitsu whined.

His father also whined. "This was supposed to be a family outing; you can't just decide not to come out of the blue! We've been planning this for weeks!"

The woman huffed as she crossed her arms and looked away. "Idiot! I wasn't planning on coming with you from the beginning."

Ietsuna looked like she might as well have punched him in the gut. "But—But… But why?!"

"I don't want to bother going because he's not my ancestor. I'd just be intruding."

"Intruding? Intruding on wha—" the brunet cut himself off and he looked closer at his wife's face. Sure enough, there was a tinge of red on her cheeks. He grinned wildly, expression doing a complete one-eighty as he pinched her cheeks. "You liar, you. You just want me and 'mitsu to pay our respects to 'our' ancestor. That's why you don't wanna come? 'cause you think it should be a blood-family-only affair?"

"Would you stop that?!" She forcibly removed his hands from her face in annoyance. "And no matter what you say, I'm not changing my mind. It's too late to get ready, anyways. I'll only delay the trip."

"You don't sound like you regret that at all! In fact, you feel smug about it, don't you?"

She raised an elegant eyebrow and her lips formed a half-smirk as if to say, 'Yeah, so?'

Her husband resignedly, and dramatically, sighed. "I know, I know. You're stubborn that way." He smiled and brushed his lips against hers. "I'm gonna miss your cooking."

The blonde rolled her eyes even as her lips involuntarily twitched upwards, which turned into a full-blown smile of amusement when she saw the disgusted face of their son. "Just get going already. The sooner you do, the sooner you can get this over with."

"Why? Miss me already?"

"I-Idiot! I didn't say that!"

"Love you too! Oi, 'mitsu, say goodbye to your mother."

"Bye Kaa-san!"

"Make sure my son comes back in one piece, or it's on your head."

Ietsuna laughed even as his body shivered at the threat. "You know I will! He's our son, after all," he winked roguishly.

The week that followed was a blur. It was a repetitive cycle; Ietsuna constantly drove while he consulted both the journal and various other maps. He only stopped to heat up some food three times a day, to take a bath, and to sleep, as well as on the occasions his son demanded they play together. The blond boy was always bored as his father drove and sought ways to stimulate his hyperactive mind, which sometimes lead to disastrous consequences. When Ietsuna made him sit in the passenger's seat, he repeatedly asked if they were there yet in an attempt to pass the time. The child did not know where they were going, just that they were going somewhere. It was a maddening week for both father and son.

When the time that they could no longer travel by vehicle came, as a dense forest was in their way, they met an unexpected resistance.

"State your name and purpose for coming here," a black-suited man demanded icily.

The Sawada males looked around nervously. They had stopped in front of the forest and stepped out of the RV to make their way through it, but in that small amount of time men in matching black suits managed to surround them, many of which also wore matching black shades. The men spread out evenly on all sides of the pair except for one group composed of seven men. They were located on the far side of the formation but not far enough that they could not reach the two unencumbered if they were so inclined. Six of the men encircled the seventh man defensively; loose enough that they did not hinder one another but clustered together in such a way that suggested they intended to protect the man in the middle. By their positions, one could quickly deduce the heavily protected man was their leader.

The brunet Sawada cleared his throat. "My name is Sawada Ietsuna and this is my son," he brought the trembling boy closer to him and he gripped onto his father's pants tightly, "Iemitsu. We came here because we're looking for the resting place of one of our ancestors."

The presumed leader of the group gained a fascinated look on his face. He gently moved the men in front of him aside so he could move out of the circle, much to their protests. He replied to them in a foreign language and they grudgingly let him be. The man slowly walked towards the cornered Japanese males. He looked to be in his early-thirties with crystal blond hair and light brown eyes. He twirled a gold-topped sceptre in one hand while his other remained in the pocket of the pants of his brown, pinstriped suit. The black-suited men that surrounded them, though they moved aside to let their leader pass, never once let their eyes stray from the two they perceived as potential threats.

"My name is Timoteo," the obviously European man introduced himself smoothly even through his accented Japanese. "You have my apologies for the behaviour of my men as they are quite paranoid, especially of strangers. We have come all the way from Italy in the hopes of finding the resting place of a very important person in our history. He moved to Japan hundreds of years ago, you see. Thus far, we have only discovered that he lived near this area and was subsequently buried."

"O-Oh," Ietsuna stuttered, intimidated by the confidence the man exuded and the power he wielded as the hostile aura around them lessened, but remained wary. "What a… coincidence! Haha, umm… according to my grandfather's journal, the man we're looking for also came from Italy. Though I'm not really sure since I've never, well, met him, you know…" He laughed nervously.

Timoteo's eyes twinkled. "I see. May I inquire the name of whom you are searching? Perhaps we can help each other as we've had no luck, as well."

"Oh, ah… his name was Sawada Ieyasu and–oh! Wait a bit…" He searched through his backpack, anxiously aware of the sudden spike in hostility, but continued his actions. With a victorious look, he pulled out Yoshimune's journal and proceeded to flip through the pages. "Umm… my grandfather wrote down his father's, my great-grandfather's, Italian name here… but I can't read the characters—because I think it's written in the Roman alphabet?—so I don't know what it says and neither can my wife so… I was hoping you could, maybe… help me…?" He hesitantly offered the ancient journal to the man. "I'd… really like to know it."

Timoteo accepted it graciously with the hand that was previously in his pocket. His eyes skimmed over the written words. They widened as he breathed out reverently, "Giotto."

"Excuse me? Jo… tto?"

The blond man raised his eyes from the journal and locked gazes with the brunet before him. He appraised him and saw him in a new light upon the knowledge of the fact that the man was the descendant of their founder. "Come," he gestured to them as he snapped the journal shut and turned his back to the Sawada males. "We have much to discuss."

"W-What?"

Iemitsu barely paid attention to his father and the oddly dressed man as they conversed. No, he was preoccupied with a nondescript, black-suited man who glared hatefully at the both of them. Something inside the boy made him continue to look at this particular man.

Then they made eye contact and Iemitsu felt his blood run cold.

The man's right eye melted to reveal a dark blue iris with a white spade for a pupil. A foreboding feeling settled in the pit of his stomach and the boy forcibly tore their gazes apart and returned his attention to his father and Timoteo.

That night, Daemon Spade made his move.

(*)

Iemitsu was far from a good son as he grew older.

Ever since the sudden death of his father, his mother had been in a constant state of regret. She worked twice as hard to support both of them but her actions lacked feeling, lacked life. Her every movement seemed mechanical. For the first five years of Iemitsu's life, she always held an iron fist as she raised him and was hesitant with affection, which was usually where her husband came in. He had been her opposite and helped smooth the areas where she was a prickly mess. When he passed away, she lost that sense of balance and regressed. She became someone far worse than who she was before, someone who was incapable of giving her son what he needed from his mother.

(Her son grew to despise her because of this.)

When the blond boy came home with a stranger and without his father, and when she was told of Ietsuna's demise, both of them were inconsolable; the wife plagued with thoughts of what she could have done to convince him not to leave and the son for the trauma he experienced when he witnessed his father's death. When the boy needed her most, she was not there. He realised that she had never been able to give the love and comfort he craved before, and with his father gone, it seemed as if there was no way for him to get it. Therefore, when she finally pulled herself together, his mind had already found a way to cope.

He forgot the entire thing ever happened and only remembered that he lost his father and that his mother did not help him through the aftermath. He fostered a hatred for her, fuelled by resentment of her failures as a mother.

He constructed a mask for others. He became the cheerful, athletic boy with the somewhat sad past of never having known his father, who lived with a workaholic for a mother. He kept this mask up and his mind steadily blocked all the times he spent with his father. He ignored everything his mother said and every lecture she gave him. On bad days, they would fight. On the worst days, they would shout and scream.

She would say in frustration how his father would have wanted him to listen to her.

He would shoot back that he could not know what his father would have wanted now, could he?

The thinly veiled reference to Ietsuna's death always ended their arguments. He always brought it up and every time he did, his mother would lock herself up in her bedroom, the one she once shared with her husband.

In his first year of middle school, he got into a bad crowd.

In the end, after months of seeing her son get progressively worse (injuries from gang fights, the smell of alcohol on his clothes, cigarette packets in the trash can in his room), she remembered the stranger that appeared on her doorstep many years ago to bring back her son and tell her Ietsuna was dead. She remembered how he remained with them until right after her husband's funeral and gave her a number, told her to use it if ever she needed help, and promptly disappeared. She looked for the number, buried in the black purse she used that day, and stared at it for a long time. When she accepted it, she never once thought she would actually use it. She knew nothing about the man. How could she trust him?

She thought of her son. She thought of the day everything went downhill and she called the number.

The man on the other end somewhat recognised her when she called. After she explained who she was, her situation with her son, and begged him to help her, he immediately acquiesced his assistance.

With regret in her heart and without any warning to Iemitsu, she sent him off to Italy.

* * *

"What the fuck am I doing here?!" A teenage Iemitsu snarled as they finally removed the sack that covered his head. He struggled, even more, when he realised he was tied up like a wild hog in a large, empty room brightly lit with fluorescent lights. He looked up and met the eyes of a man in his forties and panic fully set in. "Where am I?!"

The man snorted softly. "Your mother was right. But you look much worse than how even I imagined you to be."

The teen ceased his struggles. "My mother?" He scowled. "Let me guess, you're some sort of shrink she hired to 'help me', aren't you? She thinks I've lost it? Ha! I'm not your patient old man, she is."

The man chuckled humourlessly in response and his eyes gained a hard glint. "I assure you, I'm no doctor. The methods I will use on you are not exactly as… gentle… as someone in that profession." He gripped his sceptre tightly and the top burst into bright orange flames that shocked the boy before him. With a few swipes, the ropes that bound the boy burned away before he could blink much less scream.

"Stand up," the man ordered as he turned and walked away so that there were a few feet between them. "The sooner we get started, the sooner I will be able to return to my work."

"Who are you?" Iemitsu asked warily as he slowly stood up, eyes glued on the burning sceptre. "What are you?"

"We met, many years ago, but I doubt you'll be able to recall it. I suppose you should also know that I am doing this for you as a favour for your mother. After all…" He turned around and laid a subtly pained gaze on the teen, "I am the reason your father is dead."

"Tou-san! What do you know?! What did you do to him?!" Iemitsu so dearly wanted to approach the man and start a physical fight, but the flaming sceptre was an effective deterrent.

Timoteo shook his head as if the act would banish the memories from his mind. "Now is not the time for you to know. You are much too emotional."

"What! Then when! When the fuck will someone finally tell me how he died?!"

The man glared at the boy before him and an affronted and angered look overtook his features. "You should know. You were there."

Iemitsu was stunned into silence. He would remember something so important like that… right?

"Now…" The man brandished his weapon expertly. "Show me your resolution."

"What…? You're not making any sense old man!"

"You assumed I am here to 'help you'," he ignored the teen's protests. "You are wrong. I am here to re-educate you, especially after what I heard from your mother. Constantly seeking fights, drinking, smoking… you take pleasure from being on the brink of death and surviving against all odds. Perhaps our world will suit you more. Either way, all of us will win," he murmured the last part mostly to himself. "At any rate, simply think of these as… remedial lessons.

"And Lesson number one is this: Family is absolute."

* * *

It was an uphill battle, especially since Iemitsu fought his instructors almost every step of the way. After every successful lesson, Timoteo would divulge a few secrets and answer any of the boy's questions with selective honesty. He found it to be a good motivation and reward system while others saw it as an effective brainwashing-cum-recruiting method as the man would always paint the work he did in a better light.

In this way, Iemitsu learned of the greatest Mafia Famiglia in Italy, the Vongola, and his relation to it. He met the Ninth's three prospective heirs: Enrico, a decade older than him and a silent, capable leader; Massimo, a boy a few years younger than him with arrogance etched in every bone of his body, who followed his older brother like a shadow; and little Federico, innocent, wide-eyed, and the apple of everybody's eye. The majority of the Vongola workers he met were kind, others more stoic, but most, if not all, loved the Famiglia they worked for.

Likewise, Iemitsu, in turn, grew to love the Famiglia.

* * *

"Do you not want to be the boss?" Nono asked him one day.

Iemitsu blinked at him. He was exhausted from the Spartan training Lal Mirch put him through earlier so it took a while for the question to register in his brain. He yawned. "Of what? Vongola? Nah, don't wanna take that away from Enrico."

He mentally noted to remind the boy to work on his Italian a bit more. "But you are of Primo's blood. Surely you are aware you have more than enough right to challenge him for the position?"

The blond grinned at him lazily. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you want me to challenge your son."

Nono patiently waited.

He sighed. "I know."

"But…?"

"It's just that… being the boss of something as big as the Vongola? Not really my thing. I mean, I wanna help the Famiglia but being a grunt doesn't appeal to me and I can't be a Guardian 'cause of my Flames either. CEDEF just seems like the perfect choice for me." He stretched and felt his back pop. "Aah, that hits the spot. Man, Lal's a slave driver. She kinda reminds me of my mom. Whether it's a baby or a woman, strict girls are… ugh, just not cute at all."

"Three years," Timoteo said suddenly as a thought struck his mind.

"Huh?"

"It's been almost three years since you last saw your mother and I myself have been unable to contact her for the past year. Why don't you go visit her?"

Blond bangs shadowed the teen's eyes. "The Famiglia—"

"—can wait. We do not need you yet. Why don't you enjoy your life before the Mafia takes it away?"

He shifted and his eyes looked everywhere but at the Don. "… I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because I can't look at her in the eye until I know more about my dad… and how he died."

Nono was silent.

"Look, you taught me that 'Family is absolute', and I get that. I understand that so I understand she… neglected me because she was grieving. Somewhat. I can't really understand why she was grieving over him and forgetting about me because… well… I can't even remember him. I don't know him, so how can I feel sad that he's… gone? I know it's selfish of me but all I remember at that time was a gnawing pain in my head and the feeling of being all alone. And until I remember anything, anything at all, about my dad… I won't be able to understand how she felt when he died. And I'll never be able to forgive her. Does that make sense?"

The two males locked gazes, one searching while the other expressed a desperation to finally know.

Timoteo hesitated briefly. "I suppose… I suppose I've put it off long enough now."

Relief and anticipation shone in Iemitsu's eyes as he leaned forward eagerly, his exhaustion forgotten in light of his eagerness.

"You were only five years old when I first saw you…"

* * *

_(Nighttime is a dark period, especially in the middle of nowhere. The Sawada males were in their rented RV when five-year-old Iemitsu heard the vehicle's door creak open. He had been tense all day and well into the evening. Now, he was terrified. He could not move as he watched a dark figure enter and stealthily close the door and he held his breath as the person approached the sleeping form of his father.)_

"I don't remember much–"

_(The figure pulled out something from somewhere on its person. It was a small bottle filled with an ominously dark liquid.)_

"—I was only five after all, how could I remember anything at that age?"

_(The silhouette opened the bottle and poured the liquid inside Ietsuna's partially open mouth. It closed the man's nostrils and mouth together and hung on even as the other thrashed wildly, eyes now wide open as the brunet stared fearfully at his assailant. Then it abruptly let go of its victim.)_

"But… there are flashes. Images… vague memories, I think."

_(His father began to foam at the mouth and clutched at his throat as he tried to breathe. Ietsuna's eyes searched the vehicle until they landed on his son, then to the figure who had poisoned him, and then back to his son. Iemitsu thought that his father, with his eyes alone, screamed for him to run. Then Ietsuna's eyes began to droop. He fell to his bed on his side and foam dribbled down his chin. His son only watched with growing horror as something in his father's eyes disappeared.)_

"I remember… I remember screaming–"

_(The figure now turned to the boy and approached him menacingly. Iemitsu screamed as he moved to run but the figure darted forward to grab his neck and choke the life out of him. A cloud moved in the sky and moonlight illuminated a lone crazed eye with a white spade for a pupil. As black spots danced in his vision, he recognised the man before him.)_

"—and almost dying. I almost died that night–"

_(The little boy clawed at the hands that choked him and desperation filled his body. Instinct pushed at him, pushed him to do anything to survive, and without thought, he pulled on that desperation. Orange embers flickered to life on his forehead and his tiny hands, which shocked his assailant enough that he loosened his grip and he desperately took in a ragged breath.)_

"—but he saved me, you know? I wouldn't be here if it weren't for him."

_(The door of the RV banged open. Nono and his Guardians reacted immediately when they heard someone scream and sensed activated Flames. The man glared down at the boy murderously before he disappeared into mist, the Mafiosi outraged that he had escaped.)_

Iemitsu took a deep breath.

"I think I can understand you a bit better now, Kaa-san. I won't pretend to understand you completely, I mean, I was the one who was traumatised and you weren't there for me, but you didn't know any better so… yeah. I can't blame you… I don't blame you. Not anymore. I just want you to know that and… that I'm sorry. For not being there for you… for being an ass… for giving you a hard time… I'm sorry about pretty much everything."

He smiled sardonically.

"... Now if only I knew if you could actually hear me."

He stared down blankly at the grave at his feet, marked with his mother's name, her date of birth, and the date of her death… but nothing else. Because her only family left had not been around to add anything.

Maybe, if said family member had been around, she would not be six feet under in the first place.

"Depression my ass," Iemitsu's voice broke as he attempted to swallow the lump that formed in his throat and hold back the burn he felt in the corners of his eyes. "I was coming back, you know? Couldn't you have at least waited that long?"

There was no reply. Not even an answering wind. Not as if he expected one, though, that was just a superstition. Still, even that would have been nice; his eyes had not felt this heated since he was a kid.

"Did you have to just… wither away like that? Y… You were always so… so strong…"

Drops of water fell on the soil before the grave as the afternoon sun continued to shine.

* * *

"Hello? Iemitsu, are you okay?"

"… No."

There was silence on the other end of the phone call. Nono cleared his throat. "I take it the visit—"

"—went rather well, considering I was talking to a grave," the teen cut in dryly.

He was silent once more but this time out of shock. He immediately collected himself, sorrow apparent in his voice. "My condolences…"

"I don't want to talk about it," he replied curtly. Then he sighed and his exhaustion made him appear older than he actually was. "Listen, Nono… I think I'd really appreciate a break from everything and stay here in Namimori for a bit. I mean, I haven't been here in three years you know, and I've always wanted to go to High School…"

"I understand. Nevertheless, I cannot leave you there on your own. You're still a minor, people will inevitably ask questions."

Iemitsu blinked then sighed again. "Yeah, I guess you're right. So, what did you have in mind?"

He heard the sound of a pen as it scratched on paper through the phone. "I have a few people in mind who can be your temporary guardian. I'll have to make a few calls first, though, just to make sure."

"That's fine. Thanks for everything you've done for me," Iemitsu cleared his throat as he felt it clog up again. Acceptance of the fact that both his parents were dead was a work in progress but if having lived with Mafiosi for three years could give him any benefits it would be that he was accustomed to the concept of death and the reality of dying.

"It isn't a problem. You're part of my Famiglia, after all," the scratching shortly stopped. There was a pause before Nono sighed. "I'll leave you to your own devices then."

Iemitsu merely hung up without another word, unsure that a pitiful sound would not have escaped his mouth had he spoken.

* * *

_'That's what happened but…'_ Iemitsu thought as he looked up at the man who stood just outside the threshold of the door that led to the apartment the blond rented because his old house's ownership had been returned to the realtors.

(His monetary inheritance was still with the bank while his material inheritance was stored away, as he was not yet of age to receive them.)

The man before him was lithe in physique, unlike the teen's own rather muscular one, and taller than him by a few inches. He had professionally cut yet still somewhat spiky black hair and dark brown eyes in a perpetually narrow, hard look and a blue cylindrical bag slung over one of his shoulders. It most likely contained his weapon of choice.

So what weapon is long and can hand out a swift and easy death?

Right. A sword.

_'Damn.'_ Iemitsu thought.

The good news was, which depended on how you looked at it, was that the man claimed Nono sent him. What sealed the deal for the Iemitsu was when the older male presented him with a memo that bore the Vongola Boss' Sky Flame. All of this was done with a disturbingly wide smile Iemitsu could tell, despite how good the other was at it, was strained. Evidently, he was not looking forward to being a babysitter.

Which led to their current predicament.

_'Why did Nono send a Mafioso of all people?'_ He cried mentally. In reality, he just sighed and decided why not. The man was a Mafioso so he will damn well send a Mafioso. "Name," he stated firmly, determined not to show any more weaknesses than he already did.

The man raised an eyebrow but complied, as this was something he somewhat expected. He and his charge would need to have an open line of communication in order for him to protect the other properly. For that to begin to happen, the other at least had to have a certain amount of trust in him. "Tsuyoshi."

"Last name?"

"None." His eyes hardened even further, which indicated he would not elaborate on the matter.

Iemitsu did not expect him to. "Occupation."

Tsuyoshi's lips twitched a bit. "Freelance Hitman but, as of now, your legal guardian."

"Title," the blond continued and ran all the freelance hit men he knew of in his head and dismissed the ones who did not use a sword. There was, admittedly, very little people left as to whom this man could possibly be.

"None. Not quite well-known enough for one."

"Huh…" Made sense, actually. If someone spotted a famous Hitman out in the open, in Namimori no less, there would be too many curious Mafiosi all too eager to come and investigate. Nono, by hiring this particular Hitman, ensured the security of the last of Primo's line and the safety of the town he currently resided in.

The corner of the Tsuyoshi's mouth lifted as if he were on the verge of a grin. "Are we done already? That wasn't even 20 questions yet," he teased though inwardly he was relieved, as he did not wish to share more information than strictly necessary.

Iemitsu twitched. "How old are you, exactly?"

"I'll be turning nineteen next month."

His jaw dropped. "Wha—? How can you be my legal guardian when you're barely legal?!"

Tsuyoshi simply gave him a full-blown grin, the expression more genuine than the ones he wore before. "I was under the impression nothing about what we do is legal. In any case, I'm still older than you are, brat, and in the eyes of the law, legal enough to watch over a minor. And really, that's all that matters, right?"

The teen grudgingly grumbled his agreement and the black-haired man simply chuckled. The former then stood aside and welcomed the latter into his apartment. A sense of tranquillity settled over the newly acquainted pair, and each of their Intuitions told them the other was not a danger to them now or, it seemed, at any time in the near future.

* * *

Iemitsu's eye twitched. "You know, you didn't have to take the school campus tour with me," he muttered to his companion. "It's not like you're a student here."

Tsuyoshi walked calmly beside the younger teen as they made their way to Namimori High School's Reception Room. "Better safe than sorry. You'll be spending most of your time here, right? It'll make my job easier if I know the layout of the school."

The blond said nothing in reply as he knew the other was right. They walked the rest of the way in silence and, once they reached their destination, a female student who wore Namimori High School's girls uniform greeted them with a wave. She lounged on one of the couches with her legs crossed as she repeatedly threw and caught a Baseball ball with one hand. She had her dark blue, almost black, long hair tied up with a dark red ribbon, the tips left to brush against the space between her shoulder blades. She stood up when they closed the door behind them. Her wide amber eyes, set in a delicate face, and her impish grin welcomed them warmly.

The girl bowed. "It's nice to meet you! My name is Yamamoto Amaya, Year IV Class B, and I'm a school prefect." She straightened her posture and looked at them with open curiosity. "Sorry, but I thought we only got one new student? A Sawada Iemitsu…?" She questioned and wondered if she heard wrong.

Tsuyoshi laughed and Iemitsu was left stunned at the other's abrupt change of demeanour. Instead of the stance of a reserved off-duty Hitman, his countenance appeared like that of a regular civilian. He actually looked approachable.

"No, no, you're right. This," he placed a hand on the other teen's shoulder, "is Sawada Iemitsu. His parents are out of town for a while and I'm a family friend, so they asked me to look after him. I just came with him for the tour since I have nothing better to do," he grinned. "Ah, and my name's Tsuyoshi. Nice to meet you."

Iemitsu stayed silent. He only gave a nod of confirmation when the girl turned to look at him questioningly. He smiled nervously.

Amaya blinked and rolled her ball in one hand while her other hand stayed in the pocket of her blazer. "I… see." She smiled brightly, "Well, follow me, then. The school's not that big so I'm pretty sure you won't get hopelessly lost if you don't follow me, but then if you don't then you won't know where everything is, ne?" She laughed sincerely.

The girl was a very enthusiastic tour guide. She freely shared information and stories of each classroom and hallway, with the occasional antics of certain teachers and students. She laughed a lot and it was very easy to get along with her. Before long, she proclaimed Iemitsu as the little brother she always wanted but never had, and practically adopted him on the spot. The blond teen was clearly embarrassed but also pleased with his upperclassman's sentiments and especially her attention. Though the constant pestering to join the Baseball Club got a little on his nerves.

It made sense, he supposed. She was the Baseball Club's team manager, after all, so a bit of advertisement was to be expected.

On an entirely different note, all his attempts to steal the ball from her possession ended up in failures. She had amazing natural reflexes and he knew he was not the only one impressed.

There was another thing Iemitsu noticed. Sometimes, she would send Tsuyoshi these looks. Not ones of infatuation, though. The looks she gave him were hesitant and full of confusion. She would always send them to the older male when she thought they were not going to notice. Evidently, she lacked subtlety.

The tour seemed to end much too soon, and before they knew it, the trio was back in the Reception Room.

Tsuyoshi smiled once more and bowed slightly, but Iemitsu could read his body language and he knew that his current guardian was relieved to escape the girl's glances. "Thank you for spending some of your time showing us around."

Amaya returned the gesture albeit she appeared to be reluctant to do so. "It wasn't a problem," she grinned tightly as she straightened her posture. "I had fun anyways. But…" She bit her lip as she now openly stared at Tsuyoshi with that odd expression of simultaneous hesitance and perplexity. "I know that it's probably not any of my business but… can you please not smile like that?"

His expression faltered. "What…?"

"Your smile. No, actually, everything about you. It's all so… It feels so… fake." There was a frown on her face now and the serious expression on her laidback features caused the tension between them to spike. "I want you to stop."

"How—? Why…?"

"Because you look like you're in so much pain and I—" she bit her lip and shook her head. "N-Never mind," she turned and ran away.

Tsuyoshi was left shocked, as he never expected this turn of events. Meanwhile, Iemitsu was more in awe. Private tutors taught him how to watch the expressions of others until it became second nature to him.

Meanwhile, a girl who had none of his formal training picked up something about his guardian (whom he knew longer than she did) that he completely missed.

* * *

Sawada Iemitsu, now in his last year of High School, sat in his classroom absolutely bored out of his mind. When the memory of Tsuyoshi's latest failed attempt at courtship with Amaya no longer entertained him, he lowered himself to eavesdropping on his classmates' gossips. The group directly in front of him seemed promising.

"Can you believe it?" The white-haired male in the middle of the group groaned dramatically and Iemitsu snickered. Sasagawa always complained about his traditional family and it seemed like they did something to piss him off again. "An arranged marriage in this day and age!"

Oh?

"Sucks to be you, man."

"Yeah, who's the unlucky girl?"

Sasagawa groaned again. "That boxing-obsessed freak! Oh Kami-sama, I can practically feel my eardrums bursting already!"

Iemitsu twitched. He went to the boxing club a few times and joined in on their training so he knew exactly whom they referred. Sure, she was enthusiastic and loud, but she was not bad. She most certainly did not deserve the label of "freak".

Another of Sasagawa's friends winced. "Oh, ouch. Shit."

"That pretty much sums up the entire thing. The chick's good-looking enough, I guess, but her personality isn't your type at all."

"Unlike a certain someone—"

"Shut up!" Sasagawa yelled as he blushed.

"But seriously man, what're you gonna do? You've liked her for ages..."

As the conversation travelled down the road of hormonal teenage angst, Iemitsu tuned them out. In all his years in this town, not once did a single girl catch his eye. Oh, he was interested in girls, no doubt about it, but the one he was looking for needs to be mentally strong, sweet, and cute. Mentally strong because, if she was going to be the one he would spend the rest of his days with, then she would have to be able to deal with the less-than-legal life he would have after his graduation, and sweet and cute for his own personal preference. It was either that combination or no one at all, to hell with Nono's desire to continue Primo's line.

It was not his fault no girl in Namimori was cute enough for him. They just reminded him too much of his mother and he got enough of that from Lal alone.

* * *

"Isn't it ironic? That the things we do to feel alive are the things that can kill us." ~ k.h.

* * *

**AN: Question - Do you people even LIKE long chapters? To be honest, this one was supposed to be longer, but I decided to cut it into two.**

**\- Sora**


	4. The Sawada Family

**Warning/s: Lovey-dovey Iemitsu. Cursing. Slow pacing and development.**

**DISCLAIMER is in CHAPTER 1.**

EDITED: 10 October 2016  
\- This is the former Chapter 4

* * *

**OMNISCIENCE**

**Insight**

**Chapter 1.75: The Sawada Family**

* * *

"So no matter which home I am going to, I am always leaving another one behind. Some part of me is always absent. Missing the sights and smells of one as I go rushing to the other. Migrants, I think, are people who are never whole, never completely in one place. Ours is a fractured existence." ~ Arlene J. Chai

* * *

_Vongola Mansion and Main Headquarters, Sicily, Italy_

Polished black shoes walked on carpeted floors as their owner made his way through countless twisting and winding hallways. He turned abruptly and came face to face with a set of carved wooden double doors that bore extravagant golden handles. He took a deep breath, straightened his posture, and opened one door. He entered quietly and shut the door behind him in a similar manner.

Inside the office, two males simultaneously looked up at his entrance. An elderly man sat on cushioned upholstery behind a beautiful ornate mahogany desk, stacks of paper the most prominent item atop it and in his hand a black fountain pen, posed to sign a document. The other was a young boy who could not have been any older than seven or eight years old. He had unruly black hair and dark red eyes that glared mutinously at the man's entrance. Piles of leather-bound books surrounded him as he sat cross-legged on one of the couches.

When Sawada Iemitsu raised a sceptical eyebrow at the boy, as if he questioned his right to study in the Ninth's office during the Don's work hours, the boy's glare darkened and his diminutive hands crushed the tome he had been reading. The elderly man behind the desk, his crystal-blond hair overrun with the grey strands of age, glanced at the younger blond reproachfully then looked at the boy with both exasperation and fondness.

Time had been good to Iemitsu. At the age of twenty-two, his features had become sharper and much more defined. He had finally filled out and matured from the awkward lankiness of a teenager. Now, broad shoulders complemented his muscular build and the crisp black bespoke suit he wore flattered him, overall.

"Nono," Iemitsu inclined his head in deference. "You called for me."

The boy snorted. "Shouldn't you have knocked first, trash?" He glared at the man disdainfully with his childish chin tilted up in superiority.

The man twitched but said nothing and merely shot the child a subtly contemptuous look.

"Now Xanxus," Timoteo reprimanded, "I called him here, therefore it was not necessary to announce his presence as I expected him." He then turned to face the man, leaned backwards on his high-backed chair, and laced his fingers together. "Iemitsu, I have been awaiting further reports from your division regarding the Estraneo Famiglia."

Xanxus, who had lazily continued to skim through the book on his lap after his father reprimanded him, suddenly perked up at the mention of the Famiglia. He listened to them intently, an odd look on his face. Both adults noticed when the child began to eavesdrop on them but Timoteo continued with the conversation, which signalled Iemitsu that there was no need for secrecy. He wanted to protest, as Xanxus was only a recently acquired son and had only been part of the Vongola for approximately half a year, but did not. The blond privately thought that his boss either already had a huge amount of trust in the boy or he wanted him to become more interested in the affairs of the Family. It was most likely a little bit of both.

"The last thing that has been alerted to me is also the first thing that has brought my attention to them: the creation of the Possession Bullet. Now there has been neither a follow-up report nor any more news on the matter for months. At least, none that I am aware of." His eyes sharpened as he tilted his head to the side slightly in speculation. "Care to elaborate?"

Iemitsu appeared suitably apologetic but at the same time unfazed. "Apologies, Nono. We've been trying to gather more Intel in order to give you a thorough report on the current affairs of the Estraneo, but have admittedly remained largely unsuccessful. Other than every man, woman, or child belonging to them having a kill-on-sight order from various other Famiglia in and out of our Alliance, we haven't uncovered anything concrete on them or on what they're up to. My guess is that they're lying low for now. It seems to be the most logical thing to do for any Famiglia in their situation."

"You _guess_?" Xanxus scoffed. "Useless pieces of trash… You can't even do your job properly. I can't believe you have the guts to show your face to the Ninth after your obvious failure."

Iemitsu felt his irritation grow but he had far too much pride to begin an argument with a child, so instead he behaved as if the boy did not speak. Timoteo only sighed wearily, both at the vague report and at the palpable tension in the room.

"Thank you, Iemitsu. You may leave. Oh, and don't forget to check up on our Tokyo branch next month. They've been out of touch with us for far too long, it concerns me. My sons and I are too busy at the moment and I'm afraid I'll need my Outside Advisor to remain here in Italy, so I'll leave it to you." He then moved his attention to his youngest son and raised an eyebrow at him. The boy grumbled under his breath but grudgingly returned his attention to the book on his lap. Meanwhile, the Ninth brought his own back to his documents and gestured for Iemitsu to see himself out.

The man nodded, pointedly ignored the only other person in the office, and made his leave. Xanxus gave the blond's disregard of his presence no consideration as he felt that the man was not worth it. Although once he was sure that the annoying man was gone, his scowl deepened, and it looked extremely out of place on his childish features. "Jeez, I don't get why you trust him so much. He's useless," the boy muttered as he turned a page in his book.

Timoteo did not look up from his papers. "He's dependable and one of my more trusted men. Your brothers have also approved of him, though Massimo quite grudgingly," he chuckled in remembrance.

"I don't like him."

"Why?"

"Because. You told me he's a descendant of Vongola Primo's, right? What if he tries to take the Decimo position?" He sounded incensed at the thought.

The corners of the Ninth's lips curled up into a slight smile around his bushy moustache. "I have no worries over that as he is currently the main successor for the position of CEDEF Boss. Since the establishment of the Outside Advisors, no Vongola boss has allowed them to interfere with the workings of the Main Famiglia, as they are just that, advisers. Once he obtains that position, despite having an equal amount of power as the Vongola Don when the Famiglia is enduring times of conflict, I assure you, he will be firmly out of the running as a Vongola Boss."

"Then what about any kids he might have?" Xanxus argued. "Don't they have as much right or something? Even if he doesn't get it, what's stopping his kids from becoming Vongola Decimo or Undicesimo or something?"

At this, Timoteo finally looked up. He fixed his gaze on his son contemplatively as he set his pen down and laced his fingers together once more, elbows rested on his desk and mouth hidden by his hands. "There are many things I could say to refute your claims. One of them being Iemitsu showing no interest in any woman for many years, another being that he would do everything in his power to ensure his family will never encounter anyone from the Underworld. Best case scenario, he becomes CEDEF Boss like he always wanted and his firstborn, in the event he or she is brought into the Mafia, will become his successor."

The black-haired boy narrowed his eyes. "What's the worst case scenario?"

Nono's eyes darkened as he once more picked up his pen and sifted through his papers. "Worst case scenario is… your brothers and yourself are assassinated before any of you can inherit the throne," he lifted one stack of papers and straightened them out by tapping them on his desk, "and I will have no choice but to make one of his children my successor." He grabbed a new stack of paper and began to write once more.

A sour look found its way onto Xanxus' face. "Not gonna happen. Even if _they_," he sneered derisively, "get killed off, I won't die so easily, so you can count on me becoming Vongola Decimo," he proclaimed proudly.

An undefinable emotion crossed the old man's eyes but his features did not change from their customary genial expression, which lead the boy to think that it was just his imagination. The man paused in his writing. "I hope," he started slowly, "that I can count on you on more things than just that," he finished in a murmur, so silent that his son almost did not hear him. It was as if he spoke the words to himself and had not meant for the boy to hear it.

Xanxus shifted uneasily as his features took on a confused but mostly irritated expression. Silence enveloped the office as both males returned to their respective tasks, though the dark-haired boy felt increasingly restless. A nagging thought would not leave his mind and it messed with his concentration.

In the end, he finally mustered enough courage to turn the thought into a query. "Oi. Erm… Papa." He shifted uncomfortably, the term foreign in his mouth. "Nono," he amended, much more sure of the title that denoted the respect his father deserved.

"Yes?" Timoteo replied but did not look up from his documents.

The child shifted once more, uncharacteristically hesitant. He forced out the question that bothered him. "What was that about the Estraneo?"

The Ninth's pen stopped mid-sentence. He looked up from the paper and peered at his son with penetrating eyes. He was silent long enough that his son began to squirm, though he attempted to be discreet about it.

"What do you wish to know?" He finally replied.

Xanxus relaxed since his inquiry was accepted. He thought for a moment before he prompted, "What's the Possession Bullet?"

The man tapped his pen on his desk in a somewhat distracted manner as he answered. "The Possession Bullet is what its name implies. Someone shot with it would be able to possess someone, though I'm not entirely sure of the process or how such a thing is possible." He added the latter half of the sentence more to dissuade any ideas from his most ambitious son, though he was unsure of how effective it was.

He need not worry, however. Xanxus was not interested in a weapon of dubious mechanics and was not keen to shoot himself for whatever reason. Other than with the Dying Will Bullet of the Vongola, of course, as it was a tried and tested method. "How did you discover it?"

"Your brother, Enrico, was actually the one who discovered it. Don Estraneo had requested a meeting to demonstrate a new weapon his men had developed. I was occupied with other matters on that day so I entrusted the task to him and, well… he was less than impressed with it." A small, proud smile crossed the old man's face and Xanxus' scowl, when he saw this, deepened. "To keep it brief, there was a disagreement, one of our men was shot, and Enrico retaliated. Before long it grew into a feud between the Vongola led by your brother and the Estraneo led by their Don."

Red eyes narrowed as the boy frowned. "When did that happen?"

"Approximately… six months ago, I believe. Just a few weeks before your mother managed to contact me, actually." He smiled lightly. "We are very fortunate Enrico lived through that fight to meet you, and for you to be able to meet him."

The boy gave a non-committal grunt. "Yeah, fortunate… sure," he mumbled as his thoughts ran rampant through his mind and his eyes took on a frightening intensity.

This did not escape Timoteo's notice and he worried that he might have said something he should not have. "Why the sudden curiosity?"

Xanxus said nothing for a moment. "… No reason," he finally muttered. Then, much more silently, he said to himself, "So at that time… it could have been anyone…" His hands clenched into fists on his pants and faint red-orange Flames illuminated them for the briefest of moments.

His father heard nothing from him other than incoherent words, though the old man took note of the increased intensity of his Flames. He warily continued to observe his son, painfully aware of his "temper tantrums" as Federico had so affectionately called them. He had not meant to anger the boy but he had thought that it was a good opportunity to glean more information on the boy's past… as to this day, Xanxus remained obstinately tight-lipped about his time spent in poverty.

(*)

A man and a child walked through the snowy rundown village quietly. The child would occasionally look up at the man his mother claimed was his father. He was uncertain of the decision to leave his mother behind in this place, all alone, but it seemed she was under the impression that she would only hold him back from his destiny, and who was he to go against his mother's beliefs?

Even so, this man was nothing but a stranger to him, father or not. His mother's excited proclamations of who exactly the man was also still reeled him. At that train of thought, he had a sudden realisation, which made him open his mouth and start a conversation.

"Oi. Nono."

"What is it?"

A thoughtful silence, something very different from what Timoteo had observed from the boy. His first impression of the child had been bluntness and tactlessness, that he essentially always spoke his mind and thought nothing of the consequences of his actions.

"Mama told me you were a Mafia Boss. Is that true?"

Timoteo hesitated for only the slightest of seconds. "Yes. And what of it?"

"Do you know of any Famiglia called 'Estraneo'?"

His mind had sharpened then, alerted to the fact that this boy possibly knew more about his line of work than he let on, yet outwardly, he remained congenial and unassuming. "Yes. I know of them, and I have met with their boss as well. How do you know them?"

Xanxus stubbornly looked to the side and avoided the other's gaze. "Someone just… told me… about them. I just wanted to know if you knew them."

"And who is this someone who told you about them?"

The child finally looked up at the man, only to glare at him. "You may be my father," his hand unconsciously reached up to the scarf wrapped around his neck, "but you haven't been part of my life until now. I still don't trust you enough to tell you something personal like that."

Timoteo sighed and his eyes looked down at him with honest grief. "I know, child, I know. And I am terribly sorry for leaving you, and your mother, to such a life."

The boy looked away. "W-Whatever. Anyways, you just have to make it up to me and Mama."

His father chuckled softly. "Of course. Now, if you don't mind satisfying an old man's curiosity, why did you want to ask if I knew that particular Famiglia?"

Xanxus looked up at him once more, but this time, his face was as blank as a child's could be. "Because I hate them," he replied bluntly.

The conversation ended there.

(*)

Xanxus' fists slowly unclenched and his Flames dissipated from his hands. "Thanks," he began simply, "for telling me all that."

There was no genuine gratitude in his voice, the Ninth noted immediately. His tone was, in reality, similar to that of a machine in that it was mechanically stated. It was said not because of any real emotion behind the words but because he had taught the boy to behave as such. Give thanks for what others have given you and in return, the odds of other giving you more in the future will increase.

He was not entirely sure of how he felt about the child taking those lessons to heart.

* * *

_Tokyo, Japan_

Sawada Iemitsu had just met the love of his life, he was _sure_ of it. He, an up-and-coming Mafioso in the Underworld, had _fallen in love at first sight_.

It was almost laughable… if he were not so serious about it, of course. Tsuyoshi, Reborn, _and_ those damn heirs of the Ninth would _never_ let him live this down if they found out.

When he left the headquarters of Vongola's Japanese branch, frustrated with the man in charge, he headed to the nearest café to cool his head. It was never a pretty sight when he lost his temper and if he lost it in front of someone who was (technically) a superior, it would shoot his reputation of dependability to _hell_. He called a server when he was ready to order and the moment he looked up at her… he was a goner.

She had long, dark brown hair, hair that looked like the finest silk, tied up in a high ponytail with bangs that framed her delicately heart-shaped face. She had dewy skin that looked softer than velvet could ever be, skin that also somehow had the fragility of porcelain. Her glossy, pink lips stretched into a warm smile and the lighting made them even shinier if that were even possible.

(Also, it could actually just be his imagination but he will _swear_ for the rest of his life that at that moment sparkles and flowers _surrounded_ her _beautiful_ smile.)

To top it all off were her _eyes_. Her stunning, beautiful, mesmerising, enchanting, wide eyes the colour of melted chocolate—no, they were incomparable! Mere words could not possibly hope to capture the gloriousness of this woman. Despite her uniform (which actually complemented her splendid figure and shit that was doing _nothing_ to stop the blush on his face), she appeared to be a goddess to him, a lowly mortal. She exuded such kindness and warmth that it gave him a feeling of security similar to when he used his Flames. Yet even as they shined with such… innocence (for there could be no other word for it), his much keener eyes could detect a hint of pain, as if she still dealt with a stubborn wound that just would not _heal_.

That, more than anything else about her, caught his eye.

(Not that everything else about her did not catch his eye because holy shit she was _exactly _his_ type_.)

"Sir? Are you okay?" She asked with concern so sweet he practically melted by her voice alone.

His heart skipped a beat, flopped around a bit, then restarted twice as fast than usual, as if to make up for lost time. Then it seemed like a gunfight started in his stomach because fucking hell that was nothing _gentle_ like _butterflies_ and a heat _very much_ unlike his Flames spread warmth throughout his body while his cheeks felt like they were lit up like a damn stop light and he felt completely and utterly mortified because what very little dignity he managed to maintain throughout this entire thing told him he acted like a teenage _girl_ with her first _crush_—but that was fine.

It was fine because even though he was a grown man this exquisite being was (is) his first love. That was fine with him. He loved her already despite not knowing a single thing about her, which was a fatal mistake in the Mafia, but right now it just felt so _right_ and he did not even need his Hyper Intuition to tell him that. It was fine that his heart decided to desert the fortress he built around it and come into the possession of this cute but naïvely innocent civilian girl he just met.

It was just fine with him because he knew this woman's gentle hands would protect his heart, his _life_, far better than any amount and quality of walls in existence.

* * *

_Two Months Later…_

"Your father sounded like a wonderful man," Nana praised.

Iemitsu scratched his cheek bashfully. "Yeah, I like to think he would have been a really great dad if he got to live. What about your parents?"

She bit her lip. "Well, I never knew my mother because she died in childbirth, so I guess you could say my only parental figure… was… my dad."

His eyes gazed at her gently and did not miss the way she shook as she spoke. "Was?" He asked lightly.

She looked away as tears gathered at the edges of her eyes and took in deep breaths. "Was," she confirmed. "A little more than half a year ago, he went to Italy to visit some relatives. On his way back to his hotel, a fight between the Mafia broke out. He died of gunshot wounds and blood loss after saving a couple of bystanders."

Iemitsu grew exceedingly pale as she continued to talk. He grabbed her hand and ran his thumb along the back of it to comfort her silently. "When did he die?" He murmured, almost afraid to know the answer.

When she answered in a voice that subtly trembled, he felt something inside of him break. The date coincided exactly with Enrico's feud against the Estraneo. His Famiglia could possibly be the reason why his love's father was dead.

What was more, as he took her into his arms and held her, he knew that he was guilty by association. An accessory to murder.

Nana laughed softly which broke him from his sombre thoughts. "Sorry. That wasn't such a very good topic to talk about on a date, huh? We can talk about something else, you know. After all…" her tone turned thoughtful, despite being heart-wrenchingly painful to listen to at the same time, "it's not your fault it's hard for me to cope. Unlike you with your father…" She trailed off.

"What are you talking about?" Iemitsu said, his words somewhat muffled by her hair. "The only reason I managed to cope was because my mind made me forget. You're managing to live with those memories and that makes you stronger than I could ever dream of being."

His words struck her as she absently played with a button on his shirt. "Forget, huh…"

He rubbed soothing circles on her back. "I think…" he began, "that I'm falling even more in love with you."

She froze and parted herself from his torso to look up at his face with eyes wider than usual.

Their gazes locked, and he attempted to convey everything he felt for her through his eyes, and then tried to explain what he felt with his words. "You're the strongest woman I know. You're beautiful, you're kind, and you're completely and utterly _perfect_. How can I not love you? How can I go through every day without loving you more and more?"

Nana was in awe of the conviction in his voice. When she managed to get her wits back together and opened her mouth to speak, however, her boyfriend's ringtone cut her off. Annoyed that his phone ruined both the moment with his angel and caused him to be unable to hear her reply, he did not bother to check the caller I.D. as he answered the call. "Hello?"

"Iemitsu."

He instinctively straightened and immediately switched to Italian. "Nono?"

"I need you to return to Italy as soon as possible. The CEDEF Boss was assassinated and the position needs to be filled immediately. I'm appointing you, Iemitsu Sawada, as the new Boss of the Consulenza Esterna Della Famiglia. Effective immediately. I'll debrief you of your other duties and responsibilities when you return. That is all."

"Wha—huh?! But Nono, it's too soon! You said so yourself; I'm too young and inexperienced right now, and I—"

A click and a few beats of the dial tone signalled that the man had hung up.

Iemitsu looked at his phone in aggravation before he groaned and ran his hands across his scalp in frustration. He caught the concerned look his girlfriend gave him and promptly grimaced.

How in hell was he supposed to explain to her that he needed to leave _right now_?

* * *

_Four Months Later…_

When Nana looked up to greet the new customer, she met the guilty eyes of her (ex?) boyfriend as he held a large bouquet of flowers. He walked towards her stiffly with eyes that darted everywhere but at her and cheeks dusted with red. The moment he stood in front of her, he rigidly held out the bouquet with one hand while the other sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. She cautiously took the flowers from him and that was when he began to ramble.

"Look, I'm really sorry that I didn't keep in touch for the last four months like you wanted me to but I honestly _couldn't_ at the time because some really big mess up happened back at work and my boss had to promote me to a really important position because his eldest is going to take _his_ position and his other sons either aren't ready or don't want the position I have now so that only leaves me and I'm really sorry but I completely understand if you don't want to continue a relationship with a man who would leave for long periods of time and who you'll never know if he'll ever even come back but I just want you to know that I love you and that I will support any decision y—"

Nana giggled and Iemitsu felt his mouth snap shut with an audible click. As usual, he felt like a love-struck fool around her.

Then she gave him a warm smile, her chocolate eyes closed halfway and her features full of a gentleness that he was unaccustomed to, and he remembered exactly why he was a love-struck fool around her. His heart beat faster because everything about her was warm and soft and gentle and just so stunningly perf—

His brain crashed when it sensed warm arms wrapped around his torso (because damn how long did he exactly live without this kind of warmth in his life every day?), flowers pressed at his back, and soft lips against his tan cheek.

"Okaerinasai," she murmured and her hot breath fanned over his ear. He felt electricity shoot up his spine and restart his brain and he hugged her back tightly.

He did not even feel embarrassed when their audience in the form of the café's customers cheered. He knew Nana secretly enjoyed these kinds of romantic (borderline Shōjo manga) scenarios and he would do anything she wanted of him.

* * *

_Three Months Later…_

Yamamoto Tsuyoshi looked at his phone warily, specifically at the "Unknown Number" portion where the caller ID was supposed to appear. Another reason was that this phone was the one he used back in his darker days. He was not entirely sure what it meant that someone called this number now when the official story was that he died on a mission a few years ago.

Nonetheless, on the basis that something went wrong after all these years…

He answered the call.

"Hello?" He greeted stiffly.

A disgruntled sound came from the other end. "Jeez, can you be any slower in picking up, old man?"

Tsuyoshi frowned. The man's voice, his tone, even his words, sounded very familiar. Recognition lit up his mind and he finally relaxed as a genuine smile graced his face. "Who are you calling an old man, Baka-'mitsu? We're only four years apart."

"Still older than me, though."

"Yeah, yeah. At any rate, why are you calling me with this number? You practically froze my blood when I heard this phone ring!" He half-joked.

Iemitsu coughed. "Well, you see, about that… I may have, erm… accidentally… deleted all my contacts on my old phone without copying down _some_ of them," he finished in a rush.

'_What?'_ "_Really?_ You know, it kinda seems like you're not even _trying_ to prove me wrong when I call you 'Baka-'mits—"

"Oh, shut up," he grumbled. "Anyways, that's not what I called you for." He paused for a while before he slowly announced, "I'm… getting married."

Tsuyoshi jolted away from his previous position as his mind processed the information. "Seriously?! I thought you'd never settle down! Who's the girl? Is it that waitress you told me about?"

"… Yes…?"

Tsuyoshi groaned. "You know, you're making me look bad. It took me _four years_ to make Amaya my _girlfriend_. That was how dense she was—"

"I think it's mostly because you weren't the best at expressing your feelings…" Iemitsu deadpanned.

Like any good friend, he ignored the jab. "—and it took you, what? Nine _months_ to get a fiancée?" He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "You're not marrying her just because you knocked her up, are you?"

"What? No!" He immediately replied, aghast. "I really do love her!"

"Hm. Fine, then. So, what do you want? I doubt you called just to tell me the good news. You're far too busy to make a social call if I recall correctly." He pointed out.

"Huh? Oh, right. Well, Nana doesn't really want anything fancy and she doesn't have any close friends or relatives she wants to invite. I kinda just wanted to ask if you and Aneki could come to Tokyo—which is where the wedding's gonna be—and be our respective Best Man and Maid of Honour."

Though stunned by the offer, Tsuyoshi recovered quickly enough. "I'm not so sure that's a good idea," he began wearily. "Amaya's in a delicate term and I'm not sure she'll be up to a trip to somewhere far away like Tokyo. But I'll ask her anyway."

"Woah, wait," Iemitsu backtracked, alarmed. "What's wrong with Aneki?"

The dark-haired man blinked once, then twice, thought about it a bit, and then chuckled. "Oh, right, right. I didn't get to tell you yet, huh? Sorry, I guess I just got used to everyone congratulating us that I forgot some people still didn't know."

Iemitsu started to get impatient. "What don't I know? Did something ha—"

"Amaya's pregnant," Tsuyoshi interrupted smoothly. "Been that way for almost three months now."

There was a shocked silence on the other end.

He laughed and grinned widely. "Yeah, I couldn't believe it either when she told me." _'How could I… when I never thought I'd live long enough to start a family of my own? She gave me that…'_ "Hey, I'll call you back after I talk with my wife. Be ready with the details by then, just in case we can make it. Oh, and, next time… try not to delete my number before copying it down." The former Hitman grinned when his friend spluttered indignantly and abruptly hung up. He texted the number he used nowadays to the phone that the other used to call him before he hid away his old phone again.

Then, he sighed. As much as he loved the woman who had given him everything, he did not particularly enjoy her mood swings.

* * *

_March 6, (Year Zero)  
9:53 a.m.  
Namimori, Japan_

"Sawada?"

"… Sasagawa?"

Iemitsu was _very_ surprised that, as he walked around the streets of his hometown, he came across his High School batchmate. In all honesty, he could barely recognise the man he had become. The Sasagawa he recalled had been an average student if quite rambunctious. He would constantly get into fights with people who called him an "old man" because of his snow-white hair. The man in front of him, on the other hand, looked very sophisticated in his dark suit and his previously mocked hair had grown out in such a way that it complemented him. However, he also took in the other's red-rimmed eyes, the type you'd get after crying for far too long, and beneath them the black bags of insomnia.

He also noted the small bundle he carried. If he didn't know any better he'd say it was a—

"Waah!"

—baby…

Two pairs of eyes widened, Iemitsu's because his almost discarded thought was true and Sasagawa's because he realised he called out to his former classmate without thought of the consequences. Added to that was the fact that he was not accustomed to a distressed newborn. His skin turned into a sickly pale shade, a detail that did not escape the Iemitsu's notice.

"Yours?" He questioned softly, eyes on the bundle.

Sasagawa stiffened even as he rocked the child. "I… I… She—I mean…" He deflated and exhaustion lined every facet of his being. "Yeah. She… She's mine."

Iemitsu approached him slowly and the other made no move to stop him. Finally, he reached the duo and was close enough to peer down at the baby, now calm as she cuddled into her father's arms. "Shouldn't you be happier about that?" He muttered rhetorically as he took in the child's features, her ginger tuft of hair and her sleepy golden eyes. "She doesn't look like you…"

"Her mother," the white-haired male replied curtly as his form tensed even further.

"Ah," he hummed as he wracked his brain for information. There was something very wrong about this situation, evident in the guilt that lurked beneath the grief in Sasagawa's eyes and his own Intuition's insistence. "What's her name?"

He hesitated. "… Kyoko," he finally answered, and Iemitsu took in the way his eyes suddenly softened. "Sasagawa Kyoko."

Iemitsu's thoughts raced. Wait. Sasagawa's family arranged for him to marry the "boxing-obsessed freak" (as he so eloquently put it) and he knew for sure the baby in his arms looked nothing like her. He also knew for sure his former classmate went through with the marriage… so the most likely scenario to explain this was…

"The direction you came from," he commented. "That's where Namimori General Hospital is, right?"

Sasagawa nodded warily. "Yes… I just came from there. She was born two days ago and they only allowed me to take her out of the Hospital today."

"Hmm. That actually explains a lot but… where's her mother?"

"She—That's none of your business!" He snapped and something flashed in his eyes.

Iemitsu raised his hands in surrender. "Hey, I was just curious. I'm sure your wife is very concerned about where you're taking _your_ new child."

As he predicted, Sasagawa flinched and, with a blank face, he scrutinised the man before him. He sighed in defeat. "You know."

"I guessed. You confirmed it," he replied impassively.

Impressively, Sasagawa still managed to muster up enough annoyance to glare at him balefully. "So, what are you going to do about it? Small towns love gossip after all, and my… _affair_," he winced, "would churn the rumour mill for a good while."

Iemitsu hummed. "I'm going to do… nothing."

The white-haired male was obviously surprised, a reaction that amused the blond but he was sure his batch mate would not appreciate a smirk.

"Nothing? What are you playing at?"

'_His annoyance is back. Not good.'_ "I meant what I said. I'm not going to do anything and I'm not going to tell anyone," he paused for dramatic effect, "because that's what you're going to do."

Sasagawa glared at him in contempt. "And what makes you think I'm ever going to tell anyone about this?"

Iemitsu stuffed his hands into the pockets of his pants. "You can't keep it a secret forever. If you're planning on taking care of her," he jutted his chin towards the baby and the other man looked down as well, conflicted emotions evident on his face, "then you need to tell _someone_. Like your wife."

Sasagawa securely tucked his child into the crook of one of his arms and ran a hand through his hair. "It's… That's easier said than done."

"Look, I don't particularly care exactly _how_ your life turned out like this, so please spare me the details, but as a man to another man you've got to own up to your mistake. I know you didn't want the marriage and I'm pretty sure your wife didn't want it either, but both of you went through with it anyways and that probably means something to the both of you. If you don't tell her now and she finds out some other way, it'll just make your life that much harder."

Now Sasagawa was twice as irritated. "Look, Sawada, I know you probably mean well but you have no idea what I'm going through right now. You're right, neither of us wanted to get married but we did. And it was hell, _especially_ when she—" He growled.

Iemitsu inwardly groaned. He asked him to spare him the details, damn it! "When she what?" He prompted resignedly.

"She's not my first kid okay?! We had a son barely a year into our marriage and we had no fucking idea how to take care of a kid! The fights just got worse from there and I… I…" He clutched his daughter to himself. "I made a mistake."

Iemitsu's face twisted. "Do you mean the action or your daughter?"

"I—I don't regret my daughter but…" He lips sealed shut.

The blond sighed. "I told you I didn't want any details," he grumbled, low enough that the other did not hear. Then he spoke normally. "From what I can get from your incomprehensible outbursts you at least care about your family right?"

Sasagawa nodded hesitantly.

"And I'm going to say this out of a feeling but you don't want to hurt them, right?"

He nodded again, more certain this time.

"Then what the hell do you need to think about? Right now, you're just being a coward and saving your own skin. Even if you don't love her, you care about her enough to have a family with her, right? That should be enough reason for you to man up."

"What do _you_ know about married life?" He snapped back.

Iemitsu snorted. "Got married two months ago. It's why I'm here right now. My cute wife wants to move out and I suggested here, so I'm looking for a house to buy."

Understanding dawned in Sasagawa's eyes and his expression turned slightly more tranquil as he took advantage of the change in topic. "Ah. Newlyweds huh? Lucky bastard, you sound like you got your dream girl," he smiled wryly.

"Yeah. She's everything I wanted and more."

Sasagawa eyed the clearly love-struck expression his batch mate donned and smiled to himself bitterly. At least someone was happy. That reminds him… "_Have_ you found a house yet?"

Iemitsu blinked, abruptly taken out of his daydream of his wife. "Err… no. Why?"

The white-haired male sighed in relief. "That's good, actually. I have another house in this town besides the one I live in right now. It was actually supposed to be for my new daughter and her…" He trailed off and his eyes gained an odd flurry of emotions. He shook his head. "Anyways, I'm not going to be able to use it because she can't live on her own. If you want, we can go there right now and check it out. You can loan it from me."

"Thanks… I think."

He grimaced at him. "Don't mention it. I can't leave that place to rot after all the money I paid for it. You can pay me back at whatever time you want, but every year you don't I'll be adding a 10% interest. Also, any damages done before you pay for it in full will be included in the bill."

"Wha—? But won't _I_ be paying for the damages? Why do I still have to pay you back for those?"

"Idiot. It will still be under my name until you pay me off, so that means all expenses charged go directly to my account. And _I_ have to be the one to surrender the money."

"Right…"

"You're lucky you found me, though. I think it's the only house left in Namimori. Unless, of course, you buy a plot of land and build a new one, although I'm assuming you need it now?"

"That would be… preferable."

"Good. Let's go, then. I think you'd want to check it out before anything else." Sasagawa started to walk briskly but carefully so he would not jostle the infant in his arms.

Iemitsu managed to stay by his heels without much effort. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

He shot him an annoyed look. "I'm not being nice, especially not to you. I just need that place off my hands. You're such a bother, telling me to do this and that as if you actually have the right. Why the fuck would I do anything _nice_ for _you_? This just happens to be a convenient arrangement."

The blond returned the look with a glare of his own. "I may not have the right, but I'm just following the number one rule taught to me. I get annoyed with jackasses who don't."

"And what's this 'Number One Rule'?"

Iemitsu knew the question was sarcastic, but he answered it anyway.

"Family is absolute."

* * *

_March 30, (Year Three)  
2:27 p.m.  
Vongola Mansion and Main Headquarters, Sicily, Italy_

Iemitsu had knocked on his boss' door many times before for one reason or another. This time, however, it was a more personal matter, and in light of recent events, he had only become more determined to ensure the Ninth granted his request.

After all the years he had survived, a lucky shot finally made its way to Enrico. After all the feuds he survived in the name of the Famiglia, he lost his life in one. Even though the feud ended in Vongola's favour, it was a loss far greater than any win.

The mantle of Heir to the Throne now passed on to Nono's second eldest, Massimo, and though he had potential, he was not a favourite candidate of the Vongola like his younger brothers Federico and Xanxus were. Iemitsu knew, though, that Xanxus was not even a true candidate for the position of Decimo. He also knew that things would become more hectic from this point onward. They did not specially train Massimo to inherit the leadership of Vongola after his father and Timoteo was not getting any younger. Many Famiglia, both Ally and Enemy alike, would come to poke around for weaknesses in light of this tragedy.

This could be his only chance to make his request, and as Lal Mirch had pointed out, he had delayed it for far too long.

Iemitsu, when he heard no reply to his knock on his boss' door, immediately grew concerned. He opened the door, entered the room, and took in the sight of the man within it.

The Ninth Boss of the strongest Famiglia in the world looked nothing like the fearsome leader they painted him to be, and more like an old father that grieved for the loss of his eldest son. He sat behind his desk, subdued, as a finger traced the urn that contained the ashes of what used to be Enrico's body. He looked frail, as though every year of his age lined his tortured features.

However, still Iemitsu steeled himself. He needed to do this. Enrico's death had jolted him from his work-oriented mind-set and reminded him, very painfully, that he had his own son back in Japan. That he had another family. That he had a responsibility to protect that family as well.

(After all, his wife and son were far more fragile than Nono's own.)

"Iemitsu?" Timoteo murmured absentmindedly. "I didn't call for you… In fact, I remember saying that no one was to disturb me until I call for someone or I leave my office…"

"Sorry, Nono. But I have a… very selfish request to make."

* * *

_March 31  
8:00 a.m.  
Sawada Household, Namimori, Japan_

In less than twenty-four hours, Sawada Iemitsu felt his heart break once more. However, it was not because before him was the visage of a usually strong man reduced to a broken father, but rather something… joyful.

His wife knelt on the grass of their house's front yard, her arms stretched out in front of her. She looked beautiful, as always, with her orange knitted sweater, grey lounge pants, and long brown hair tied back into a low ponytail. She cheered words of encouragement to an adorable, two-year-old boy in a pink hoodie, dark brown pants, and socks. His brown hair was messy and his chubby cheeks puffed up as his tiny eyebrows knitted together in concentration. He stood up then, arms akimbo and shakily moved one foot forward without support. Their son then began to walk towards his mother.

Iemitsu felt his heart break because of this scene because this… this was something he could have enjoyed with his wife. Their son's firsts…

How many of them has he missed?

(You could not turn back time. You could only try to make up for the time you have lost.)

"You're almost there Tsu-kun!"

Just when Tsuna was a step away from his mother, he grew lazy and instead tried to collapse onto his mother's lap. She caught him by his shoulders before he could fully fall onto her and giggled. She pulled him up and made him sit on her instead, and they looked at each other and smiled identical smiles.

That was when Iemitsu moved the gate and it opened with a loud creak. Nana looked up in alarm and her eyes widened even further as she laid them on him. She looked at him as if she could not quite believe that it was really him. Their son, though he imitated his mother's actions, continued to look at him incomprehensibly, and with more than a little anxiety.

Nana stood up, Tsuna clutched tightly in her arms. She approached him slowly. "A-Anata…?"

Iemitsu looked at everywhere but at her before he handed her some flowers in a manner that seemed oddly familiar. This time, though, he included a wrapped-up box with the bouquet. "Happy birthday Nana," he murmured gently, "and… I'm home."

Tears ran down Nana's cheeks as she set Tsuna down and bypassed the gifts to wrap her arms around her husband who had been gone for far too long. "Okaerinasai," she whispered, and though her voice was hoarse, it was just as he remembered it.

They stayed that way for a long time.

… At least, they would have, if Tsuna did not start to cry about how his mommy ignored him for a stranger.

* * *

Iemitsu loves his Famiglia. They gave him, not exactly something that made him a better person, but a purpose. He was someone important in that world.

He also loves his family. His cute wife and son give him something worth protecting: a home, a place with unconditional acceptance, and most of all a heart. His humanity would have been lost long ago if it were not for them.

However, whether he was in Italy or Japan... he never felt exactly like himself. He never felt _whole_.

What was one supposed to do when their heart is split in two?

Where does one go?

…

Can you really blame him for his choice to stay with what was familiar to him?

* * *

"He loved her, of course, but […]. Choice: that was the thing." ~ Sherman Alexie


	5. Lessons Forgotten

_**AN: For those who've noticed, I have a new image to represent this fic … it's not mine. I just edited it. Credits to the artist since I just found it on Google Images.**_

**DISCLAIMER is in CHAPTER 1.**

* * *

"Oh, Tsuna! How about I push you on the swings?"

It did not take long for the two-year-old boy to begin to cry because of the harsh motions of the swing as Iemitsu pushed him.

His father panicked.

"Okay, okay! Then, how about the slide? Looks fun, eh?"

When the man held him aloft to place him on top of the slide, Tsuna looked at the ground and his eyes widened at the fact that it was suddenly so far away. Tears ran down his cheeks as broken sniffles escaped from his mouth.

His father panicked again.

Eventually, Iemitsu gave up and left his son to the crayons and papers they brought with them to the park. He sat dejectedly next to his wife on a nearby bench. Nana, for her part, simply looked happy that her husband was here to spend some time with their son. She was a little worried her husband's actions would traumatise Tsuna but dismissed the thought when she realised that he was still a toddler. He probably would not even remember this day when he grew up.

"He really likes to draw, huh," her husband commented and she nodded happily.

"Tsu-kun rarely does anything else but draw these days. He's also rather good for his age," she added with a bit of pride.

"That's nice. Maybe I should get him some tutorial sketchbooks for beginners on his birthday. It's a good hobby to have."

"Oh, that sounds wonderful! Maybe we should buy a few storybooks for him too. I've been teaching him how to read, write, and talk properly. He's not so good at reading and writing yet and he still refuses to talk to strangers. We're working on it," Nana chattered on.

When her husband did not reply to her rambles, she tore her gaze away from their son to bestow the man an expression of confusion. She was surprised to see that he had a mildly depressed look on his face. She ran their conversation through her head again and belatedly realised her mistake.

"Oh, anata, I didn't mean you were a stranger to him. It's just—" she bit her lip to stop herself. With the words out of her mouth, she found that she could not deny the fact that she did not have a single defence for their son's attitude towards his father.

"Sorry," the Sawada patriarch's murmur broke her from her thoughts. "I guess I'm just not good at this parenting thing, huh?"

She smiled at him encouragingly. "Don't worry about it, anata. You'll get better if you spend more time with him! I'm sure Tsu-kun will warm up to you quickly if you do."

He winced and turned his head away slightly, as if he could not bear to look at her anymore.

His wife's smile dimmed. "Anata…?"

The blond coughed then spoke with a gruff voice, "My boss only allowed me to return home for a day. Things are about to get a lot more hectic back at work, so I have to leave first thing in the morning." He paused then he quietly added, "My boss' eldest son died two days ago."

Nana gasped, her dread swept away by a wave of concern touched with sadness. She could not even begin to imagine how _she_ would feel if she lost Tsuna. If that was the case, how much worse was the man's grief at his loss? "Oh, my… Is he alright?"

"He'll be fine," Iemitsu said firmly with an exhausted grin. "He's amazingly strong for his age, you know! Though… that doesn't change the fact that he isn't getting any younger. We're all really worried about him." The furrow between his brows and the pinched look on his face emphasised his sentiment.

"Please give him my condolences," she replied honestly. She worried her lower lip between her teeth. "I guess I have no choice but to say 'Do your best', huh? It sounds like you're really needed back there," she tried to smile reassuringly and, with the way her husband's face relaxed, she was glad it came out genuine. "But… can you at least promise me something?"

He hesitated for the slightest of seconds. "What is it?"

"Can you at least stay until I wake up?"

The man's face grew subdued. "I'll try," he promised solemnly.

Like a fool, she hoped he would succeed.

(*)

She awoke from her dream of yesterday's memory and anxiety knotted her stomach as she turned to her side. Her spirits sank at the sight of the empty side of the bed. She felt the area and sure enough, it was cold to the touch, most likely vacated many hours prior. Her heart felt heavy but no tears fell from her eyes. She was already much too resigned to the man's disappearances and she believed a part of her had come to expect them.

Yet her feelings for him never changed. Love was somewhat cruel that way.

She sat up on her bed and caught sight of the calendar in her bedroom. She rubbed one eye, stretched, and stood up to walk over to the calendar. She flipped it to the next month.

Today was the day after her birthday. April first.

She smiled to herself sadly, tiredly. _'Happy April Fool's day.'_

* * *

**OMNISCIENCE**

**Arc I: Childhood Days**

**Chapter 2: Lessons Forgotten**

* * *

"Nothing that happens is ever forgotten, even if you can't _remember_ it." ~ Zeniba, _Spirited Away_

* * *

_October 14, (Year Three)  
9:13 a.m.  
Sawada Household, Namimori, Japan_

'_That man… he's here again,'_ three-year-old Tsuna noted. In all honesty, he would have forgotten about him by now but something, a feeling, prevented him. It told him that the man was someone he should know, that he was someone _important_ to him.

However, he never dwelt on that thought. It made him uncomfortable and, even if the man brought out many conflicting emotions within him, the books he got from him interested the boy more.

He did not like the book full of lines his Mama called "words". He liked the book with the pretty pictures. It was full of shapes and he liked them even if they were black and white and not colourful like the pictures he made with his crayons. Sometimes, though, some of the shapes had missing parts and had dots instead. The dots were terrible replacements for the lines that were supposed to be there. There were also some weird characters thrown in there but he could not understand the "words" they were making all that well.

Overall, he thought it was a weird book, but pretty.

He looked at the object in his fist. The "pencil" was something his mother had given him. Was he supposed to use it on the book?

The feeling was back. It seemed to agree. He nodded to himself and placed the tip of the pencil on a dot in an incomplete shape… thingy. The feeling told him to connect the dots so that is what he did. It also seemed to know where he should connect next. On one shape, he did not listen to the feeling and it turned out all wonky and... Wrong. His head also hurt.

Note to self: Always listen to the Feeling.

Tsuna did not know how long he sat there but he must have fallen asleep because he woke up in his mother's arms. His mother did not look like she realised he was awake but he wanted to stay in her arms a little longer, so he kept quiet. She had a weird look on her face and her eyes were shiny. It made him hurt for some reason. Right in his chest, there was an aching feeling.

He wanted it to go away.

He turned his head slightly and realised his Mama's eyes were on the man who gave him the books. Something came out of his nose as he slept. That did not come out of _his_ nose when _he_ slept, did it? It made the man look weird. He did not want to look like the man.

'_Why does Mama look at him like that?'_ The boy thought. _'Even back then,'_ he suddenly remembered. The next day, after the man left, his mother had a look like that too. He could not bring himself to forget it now that he remembered. It was so different from his Mama's usual faces. It hurt him instead of making him feel warm and fuzzy… and it was because of that man.

He wanted the bad feeling to go away.

He wanted the man to go away.

Even if he felt like something inside him hurt even worse when he thought that.

* * *

One day, Nana taught her son about fathers. About how "the man" was actually his Papa. Tsuna, curious, asked why he was not usually around like his Mama. He believed her when she said he was a very busy man who kept them safe and happy in their house, and that he loved Tsu-kun very much.

She was his mother and he believed his mother was always right. He also noticed that when he acknowledged the man as his father it made the bad, broken feeling he had to go away, and he liked that. Therefore, he decided to give the man a chance to prove himself as his "Papa". He did not accept him right away because the Feeling made his head throb a bit when he thought to be nicer to the man the moment he came back to visit. He trusted the Feeling and liked it too because it made him much surer of what he was doing. After all, it never failed him before, just like his Mama.

Tsuna also had to admit, when the man visited home a few weeks after the New Year, that his mother was happier. Happier than when she played with him or when she was simply around him, actually.

He tried not to think about that too much.

* * *

Tsuna liked to draw. No, wait, he _loved_ to draw. He always thought how the things around him were pretty and how he would like to make those pretty things himself. His drawings, though… they rarely ever turned out the way he wanted them to and he was even less satisfied with the outcome, so more often than not he usually redid everything. The Feeling never really helped him in his endeavours other than the occasional nudge or two but he did not mind all that much. He liked it when he discovered new ways to make his drawings better but he especially loved it when his mother stopped just to watch him for a while and to comment that he drew better every day.

He was always happy when she acknowledged his efforts. His mom was even happier whenever he showed her a new drawing.

* * *

Nana did not work as she opted to be a simple homemaker and devote her time and attention to her son. On days when she had no need to do chores around the house, and her son grew bored of drawing or playing alone, she taught him new things. On one of these occasions, she taught him about "birthdays".

"Dof Mama hab bithday?" Tsuna asked around the fist he had stuffed in his mouth. She removed it only for him to place it back there stubbornly.

"Everyone has a birthday Tsu-kun," she replied patiently and resorted to gentle slaps on her son's hand whenever he moved to place it in his mouth. "It's a very special day because… well, because it's the day you enter this world. The day your existence begins."

"Eks-sis-tans?"

The young mother, as was usual whenever she realised she made an explanation more complicated than it had to be, winced. She had not anticipated how difficult it would be to explain concepts to a child. Not for the first time or for the last, she wished her husband were around to make things at least a little easier, but immediately removed herself from that particular train of thought. She instead focussed on how she could best describe something as vague and intangible as an "existence".

"An existence is your life." She thought for a moment. "It's what you call your very being. It's something that you call yourself from the day you are born until… well, we'll talk about when an existence ends next time." That confused her a bit as she no longer understood what she just said. Maybe she should try a different approach. "Have I told you what it means to 'exist'?"

Tsuna shook his head.

"Well, even when you're doing nothing, you still 'exist'. You can still talk, walk, breathe, and do plenty of other things. When you do all these things without thinking, you have what you call an 'existence'. Do you understand?" She added with uncertainty.

The boy scrunched up his face in thought before he raised his hands and stared at them. "So… Tsu-kun's eks-sis-ting right now? And you call that Tsu-kun's eks-sis-tans?"

"_I'm_ existing and _my_ existence, Tsu-kun. But yes, that's what you call it."

Tsuna's nose twitched as he pouted. "Mama calls Tsu-kun, Tsu-kun. Tsu-kun full name Tsunayoshi. Not 'boku'."

"Hai, hai, I know. But you can't say your name all the time, that's why little boys like you use 'boku' when they talk about themselves."

"Tsu-kun still no gets."

Nana sighed but smiled fondly at him. "We'll work on it, then. Have to get you ready for school, ne?"

He appeared to think for a long while. His mother let him be, as she knew that once he settled his still-spontaneous thoughts he would voice his question.

Sure enough, he did.

"Why?"

"Hm? Why what, Tsu-kun?"

"Why people eks-sist? Why people live?"

She paused as her surprise halted her thought process. She had not expected such a question from her son, but he was a curious child and she wanted to support that curiosity. Still… "The answer to that… is something you'll know when you're older," she replied to him, full of certainty.

"Ehh? No fair! Tsu-kun wanna know now!" He whined.

Her eyes warmed as she smiled gently. "It's something you need to figure out for yourself Tsu-kun. The answer is different for everybody."

He blinked up at her innocently. "What's Mama's?"

This was actually a question she did not need to think of. Her answer was the goal she set for herself when she started to plan what she would teach her son, "To raise you into a fine young man your Papa would be proud of."

There, an answer that showed she thought of what was best for her son that, at the same time, ensured he would remember his father. After all, little boys want to become like their Papa, right?

'_It's a good answer,'_ she thought to herself approvingly.

Instead, Tsuna shrunk into himself. For some reason, he felt disappointed, but the Feeling told him he should have expected it and to hide what he felt. He instinctively knew that any sort of negative emotion would upset his mother and that was something he never (ever) wanted to do.

He did not want to be the reason she had that face his Papa sometimes made her make. It was sad. It was as if she was going to cry and he knew how horrible you had to feel over something to cry since he did it a lot.

Instead, he asked another question. It had been on his mind the entire time he asked his other questions. This was safe, the Feeling told him. This would make Mama happy.

"When Mama's birth-day?"

His mother's eyes widened as her smile broadened. The boy's own face brightened in response. There, that face was much better, and he liked it when he made them come out. 'Course, they were never as bright as when Papa came home, but he liked the fact he made her smile more than Papa did.

Nana stood up to get a nearby calendar then returned to her previous position to begin a new lesson.

* * *

_March 31, (Year Four)_

"Mama, look, look!" Tsuna excitedly called out. He worked on his first-ever project for weeks with little to no breaks at all, excited to show and give it to his mother. He noticed that she looked a little sadder every day ever since his father left after his last visit. So, when he learned about her birthday, he was determined to give her a gift to make her happy again. It was a little hard to hide his drawing from his mother while he worked on it and he had no experience with coloured pencils (which his Papa gave him) but he knew it was his best work to date and he was satisfied with it … for now. He felt a little bad that he used so much paper for his first few attempts, though.

He grinned to himself. _'And Mama didn't notice a thing!'_

"Ara, Tsu-kun? Are you finally going to show me what you've been so focused on drawing lately?"

'… _Or maybe she did,'_ he pouted. He wondered if he would have been able to keep it a surprise if he had listened to the Feeling more than he concentrated on his drawing.

"Hai~!" Tsuna happily shoved a piece of letter-sized paper folded in half at his amused mother. He bowed and yelled, "Happy Birthday Mama!" He made sure to pronounce the greeting carefully, just to make sure his mother got his message right.

Nana accepted the piece of paper with a delighted expression on her face. "Ah…! Thank you, Tsu-kun!"

"Open it!"

"You must have worked so hard on this," she commented as she unfolded the paper. Her eyes drank in the sight of the drawing that practically popped out of the paper.

The drawing depicted a young woman who held onto a little boy's hand to keep him aloft, just a few feet above the ground. The boy's other hand held onto another's, a man, who did the same for him. They were surprisingly not stick figures and rather well proportioned, though they lacked detail. Their clothes, while colourful, looked flat and unrealistic, another indication that it was the work of a child. Even so, the woman's face appeared meticulously drawn, her eyes her most prominent feature, and that was when Nana realised it was her, long flowy hair and all. She looked closer at the little boy's face and sure enough, light brown lines sprouted from the drawing's head to portray hair, and it somehow managed to emulate the vaguely star-shaped figure her son's own hair made. The boy in the drawing had his eyes closed in happiness and his mouth was wide open in a soundless cheer. She excitedly moved her gaze to the man she was sure was supposed to be her beloved and she froze.

Now that she looked closer, her son did not draw the man as well as he did the woman and child. By the marks on the paper itself, he constantly erased and re-illustrated the figure with more than a little frustration. His face and body, compared to the other two, appeared carelessly scribbled in, as though he were an after-thought and was not meant to be included originally.

Tsuna unknowingly answered the question plaguing his mother's mind. "Sorry Papa look weird. Tsu-kun tried thinkin' 'bout 'im for a long time but Tsu-kun can't really see hi–" His eyes widened as he stopped himself mid-sentence. "… Mama…?" He asked in a shaky voice as if he were about to cry.

Nana had her hand held over her mouth to stifle her sobs as tears ran down her face.

'_Why?'_

"Ma… ma?"

'_Why are you crying? Is it that bad?'_

"S-Sorry… if it's bad…"

'_Is it me?'_

"T-Tsu-kun can do it again!"

'_Just please stop crying.'_

She abruptly stood up and, with a whispered apology her son did not hear, she ran to her room.

Tsuna heard the door lock not even a second later. After a moment, he gathered enough courage to walk up to the door. He hesitantly listened through the wood and his heart constricted when he heard muted sniffles.

'_I don't want this pain. Make it go away.'_

The little boy knocked on the wood. "Mama…?" He bit his lip. "You okay?"

No response. He only heard the sound of heavy and shaky breaths.

His eyes prickled but he refused to cry. Crying will not help him here, his mom always felt worse when he did. She never showed it on her face but he knew, the Feeling let him know. "Tsu-kun… I," he changed his form of address to himself with the hope that this would make his mother listen to him, "can do it again. I can make somethin' better. So… please. Stop… crying…"

No reply.

With a heavy heart, the little boy returned to his room, locked his own door, and he finally let his tears flow.

Dinner that night had been a stilted affair. Neither of them said a word to the other. They let their dishevelled appearances and red-rimmed eyes speak for themselves.

* * *

_April 1_

Tsuna was scared. So very, very scared.

The child had been quietly miserable when he woke up that morning and recalled yesterday's events. He prepared himself to apologise for as many times as needed even though he was not entirely sure why his mother cried, only that it was somehow his fault. That was actually one of the reasons he was finally determined to talk with her; it was so that he could find out what he did wrong and make sure he would never do it again.

He was mentally prepared for anything that morning… that is, he believed he was, until his mother walked into his room and smiled as though nothing was wrong and told him that breakfast was going to grow cold if he did not go down soon.

That was why he was so scared.

Did something happen to his mother? Something had to have happened for her to forget about yesterday so suddenly. How could she go from a crying, silent mess to how she had been before? Did she really forget?

The Feeling told him she did not. Then why? Why was she like… this?

Tsuna did not understand…

... But…

Even so, when Nana asked if he was okay, concern on her face and worry in her voice, he smiled back up at her brightly and replied an affirmative. Even through his fear, his desire to do nothing to sadden his mother and everything to make her happy shone through.

They continued their lives then, as though nothing distressed their little family.

Tsuna still did not understand. At times, his curiosity would be too much for him to hold back and he would find himself with his mouth open to ask about _that day_… but the Feeling always stopped him before a sound could leave his lips. He knew, through the Feeling, that questions would only make his mother sad.

That did not mean she did not scare him.

He promised himself that he would never forget. He did not want other people to be scared of him, like how the other kids at the playground always scared him. Even if his mother assured him that they meant no harm, something he did not really understand since they pushed each other to the ground a lot and that looked incredibly painful.

(Years later, he would remember the day after that disastrous initial attempt at gift giving and realise that that was when he began to lose faith in his mother.)

* * *

Nana was worried. As weeks went by her son grew more and more withdrawn to the point he was surprised and at times hesitant whenever anyone, even she, would speak to him. Concerned, she brought him to the park instead of the playground, as many other families and children frequented this area more. She hoped that he would make a friend here and that whoever they were would bring her son out of his shell and return him to the cheerful boy he really was.

She could see that he tried very hard to play with the other kids and be like them but it seemed his efforts always fell short. It made his back hunch in timid defeat. A pang of pain went straight to her heart when she realised that their little outing only served to depress him more. It was not fair. Her son was the best son a mother could ask for. He constantly thought of others rather than himself, thought of whether he was doing the right thing or not, or if he was helping others or not. He was _considerate_. She just _knew_ he would become a great friend to _anyone_ if someone would just give him a _chance_.

So she did not, could not, understand why other children ignored him in favour of anyone _but_ him. Did they not notice him? Was it because he was shy? Did they see him as, in that odd way only children could, _different_ from the rest of them, which caused them to ostracise him?

She could not comprehend it. All she knew was that her little boy was hurt every time someone ignored him.

She was sure that if he made a friend, even a single one, he would feel better. However, not many of the children her son's age were interested in the activities he was, and he was terrified of the roughhousing the others were preferred. She needed to find someone calm and easy-going, which was somewhat of a challenge seeing as even she was not so familiar with the inhabitants of Namimori, let alone their children. Her husband was, though…

An invitation for tea from a certain couple familiar with Iemitsu popped into her head. That day somehow felt like it happened an eternity ago. A metaphorical fluorescent bulb lit up in her head as an idea formed.

Once they arrived home, Nana dialled the Yamamoto's house number. She could not help but let her mind wander and wonder if Tsu-kun was like how he was now because of what had occurred on her birthday. Guilt pierced her heart. She had not meant to react in such a way; it was just that the meaning of the manner in which he drew his father struck a very sensitive chord within her.

At that time, though she still pined for a visit from her beloved just so he could greet her a happy birthday like the year before, she had been brutally reminded that for her son… he might as well not have a father, to begin with.

That realisation hit her so hard she could not possibly hold back her emotions. She could still remember a few wonderful times spent with her own father and when she became conscious of the fact that her son lacked such pleasant memories…

It hurt. It just hurt… so very much.

Nana shook her head away from her depressing thoughts. At any rate, right now her son held more importance than recollections of a time she could barely recall. This was her life now, looking after her son's well-being was her single and most meaningful responsibility. Once again, the thought that she caused her son's current disposition because of her negative reaction _that day_ brushed against her mind, but she shook that off as well.

Even if that were the case, her son was still young. In time, he would forget, as all children eventually do.

"Hello? Yamamoto Amaya speaking, may I ask who is calling?"

* * *

_April 24  
1:00 p.m.  
Apartment above Takesushi, Namimori, Japan_

Tsuna shifted from one foot to another uneasily. A few days ago, his mother told him they were going to a small birthday party for the son of one of his father's old friends. Then she took him out to shop for a birthday gift. He hoped the other boy would like what he picked out based on what his mother told him about his preferences. He really did not want what happened on his mother's birthday to happen again since he was sure he would get in trouble with the adults if he made the birthday boy cry.

Then his mother would be disappointed in him. That alone exponentially increased how nervous he already felt.

Tsuna hid behind Nana, who carried the present, as they entered the relatively new sushi restaurant, one that quickly gained popularity amongst the townspeople. Upon their entrance, a happy couple immediately welcomed them with friendly smiles on their faces. The boy almost relaxed at the pleasant atmosphere but instead tensed when the woman called for someone to come down and greet their guests. He realised that she must have called for the birthday boy and his nerves practically killed him. He tightened his sweaty grip on his mother's leg.

Takeshi. That was the boy's name. Since he was older than Tsuna by a few months, his mother told him to call him Oniichan. Tsuna also noted (when he got a good look at the Yamamoto family together) that unlike him, Takeshi looked to take after his father.

"Tsu-kun," Nana gently nudged her son forward. At the same time, she held out the gift in her hands. "Go on and give Takeshi-kun his present."

He hesitantly detached himself from his mother and took the present from her. He held the gift delicately in his sweaty palms even though a part of him wanted to crush it in his hands to release the nervous tension in his body. Only, he did not want to crumple the careful package. Instead, he stiffly made his way to the other family in slow steps and used the time he took to observe the other boy.

Takeshi had the same messy dark hair as his father. However, Tsuna noticed that if he tilted his head just right, the light would show a tint of dark blue similar to his mother's hair colour. The wide shape of his eyes, though characteristic of others his age, appeared to lean towards his mother but the amber of his iris was definitely a paternal trait. His casual wear consisted of a black shirt that displayed a Baseball bat and ball, dark green shorts, and white shin-length socks. His smile was bright and beneath the patient exterior he put on, Tsuna could felt an excited sort of energy radiate from him, calm and constant, like running water. It made him smile.

He also noted, with a pout, that like everyone else the older boy was taller than he was.

When he finally stood in front of the birthday boy, he held out his gift shyly. "H-Happy Birthday, O-Oniichan."

The black-haired boy blinked but his grin did not falter. He looked up at his parents who smiled at him in encouragement. Then he looked back at Tsuna and tilted his head to the side curiously. "Is that for me?"

The brunet meekly nodded. "U-Un…"

Takeshi's grin grew so wide it seemed to split his face. He was thrilled as this was the first present he got from someone who was not his parents. That made him feel good, for some reason he could not quite explain. "Uwah! Thank you!" He exclaimed in slight awe as he took the gift from the shorter boy. It was round and soft, and he briefly wondered what it was.

"Take-kun," Amaya gently began even though there was a wild grin on her face at the endearing sight the two kids made, "introduce yourself."

"Hai! My name's Yamamoto Takeshi! What's yours?"

Tsuna looked down at the floorboards shyly and fiddled with the hem of his shirt, a blush on his cheeks. "Sawada… Tsunayoshi…" He mumbled incoherently, even to his own ears.

"Eh? Sorry, I didn't hear that."

He tried again, louder this time, "Sawada," before he mumbled again, "…yoshi."

They were silent for a moment and as each second passed, Tsuna felt the atmosphere grew more and more awkward. Then, Takeshi abruptly let go of his present, which landed with a soft rustling thump on the ground, so he could use his hands to pinch the brunet's pink, chubby cheeks. "Cute!" He looked up at his mom. "Ne, ne, Kaasan. He's what you call cute, right?"

His mother giggled behind her hand while Tsuyoshi rolled his eyes good-naturedly. Meanwhile, near the entrance of the restaurant, Nana hid her smile as she stifled her laugh with her own hand at her son's adorably confused and pinched face.

"Yes, Take-kun," Amaya finally replied. "He's what you call cute."

Takeshi's hands suddenly stopped pinching Tsuna's cheeks so they could instead grab onto the other's tinier hand. Then he pulled the smaller boy up the staircase. "Let's go to my room Yoshi-kun! We can play there!"

Tsuna periodically stumbled as the taller boy dragged him up the stairs but every time he did Takeshi somehow managed to keep him balanced before he could fall. He did not even seem to notice his own actions, as though it was natural for him to help Tsuna with his clumsiness.

"Yoshi…?" The brunet's mouth parted slightly at the realisation that the older boy must have misheard him because he mumbled his name. When they reached what looked like Takeshi's room, he attempted to rectify his mistake. "Wait—"

"Ne, Yoshi-kun, what do you usually do for fun?"

He blinked when those amber eyes gave him their full attention and his mind drew up blanks. "I-I usually… draw…"

The dark-haired boy's eyebrows scrunched up in thought. "Draw…?"

Tsuna grew nervous again. He forgot, at the abruptness of the question, that most kids did not like what he did. Even if they did, it was not to the extent that they would spend most of their time drawing, as he was wont to do.

"Sounds fun! Can you teach me how to do that?"

He blinked again as he processed the other's words. Before he knew it, the other's pace swept him away and he found that he could happily follow through with whatever Takeshi wanted to do. His exuberant yet soothing energy gave Tsuna a peace he did not know could exist.

* * *

Amaya, Nana, and Tsuyoshi shared identical smiles as they spied on the two boys' activities and listened in on their conversation.

"—and then you give them clothes," Tsuna explained.

"They don't look like clothes, though. There aren't any… um… folds! Yeah, that's what Tou-san calls 'em."

"… I dunno how to make those."

"Don't give up! Kaasan always said you never know 'til you try!"

It was silent for a long while, though the adults could hear the faint sounds of drawing and/or colouring implements as they scratched on paper. Suddenly, Takeshi's somewhat forced laughter broke the quiet.

"I guess you're right Yoshi-kun! We failed," he added in embarrassment with a hint of shame.

"I-It's okay. A-At least we tried, right, Oniichan?"

Nana could not stop herself any longer. With a bright grin, she remembered enough of her manners to knock on the door politely before she opened it and entered Takeshi's bedroom, a camera clutched in her hands. "Tsu-kun, Takeshi-kun! Smile for the camera and say 'Cheese'!"

Both boys looked at each other in surprise before they shared equally happy grins and did as told.

* * *

"Ne, Yoshi-kun. Why does your Kaa-san call you 'Tsu-kun'?"

"… It's just… somethin' she calls me."

"Oh. Should I call you that too?"

Tsuna thought about it. "… No," he finally answered, "I like what you call me."

'_Because even though I'm "Tsuna"… you're my first friend, so you can call me anything you want.'_

* * *

_6:00 p.m.  
Sawada Household, Namimori, Japan_

"Mama?"

"Hm? Yes, Tsu-kun?"

"Can we visit Oniichan again tomorrow?"

Nana gave him a soft smile, silently happy that he seemed to regain his previous cheer. "We'll see, Tsu-kun."

Tsuna pouted as he visibly deflated but nodded his acceptance on the matter.

"Mama?"

"Yes, Tsu-kun?"

The brunet shyly looked down at his feet. "… Can I have that picture you took?"

His mother blinked as her wide eyes freely showed their surprise at his request. Then, she smiled at him brightly. "Of course, Tsu-kun."

After dinner and after he was tucked into bed by his mother, comforted by his covers in the privacy of his bedroom, Tsuna grinned at the picture of him and his first-ever friend. They smiled happily, surrounded by papers full of drawings and crayons as they clutched pencils in their tiny hands.

Something like this… he would love to create happy drawings like this. To make something so beautiful and happy… he would love to draw something like that, if only to share such joy.

'_I feel… warm,'_ Tsuna thought, and without his knowledge, his brown eyes shone in the dark recesses of his room, a tinge of orange fire in their depths. _'I like it… this feeling.'_

* * *

_October 13  
11:55 p.m.  
Sawada Household, Namimori, Japan_

Tsuna could not sleep. How could he? He finally knew why his Mama always gave him a present on the same day every year. It was _his_ birthday tomorrow!

Nonetheless, that was not exactly the reason he could not sleep. Earlier in the day, they got a postcard from Iemitsu that said he would have his birthday gift for his little Tuna-fishy delivered tomorrow and that they should look forward to it. The mystery bugged the boy so much that he felt incredibly impatient for the day to pass and for the sun to come up to show tomorrow had come and that it was his birthday. Above all, his mom said the Yamamoto family closed Takesushi for the day so that he could celebrate there and play with his Oniichan, which was something they did not get to do often since Takeshi started to play Baseball with his other friends more.

That made him sad but he perked himself up with the thought that, since it was _his_ special day tomorrow, they could play as much as he wanted!

The little boy was bothered that he could not sleep, though. His Mama explained that he needed all his energy for tomorrow and he would not be able to play with his Oniichan if he was sleepy. Therefore, he needed to sleep. Like, right now!

As he mulled over his problem, something bright flashed in the periphery of his eyes. He blinked at his clock and read the time. A smile split his face and he ducked his head underneath his blankets to smother his face with his pillow. It was midnight now and his Mama taught him that when midnight strikes it actually meant the next day already started. Not to mention she told him he was born at exactly the midnight of October 14, which meant that it was already his birthday!

Now he knew he definitely would not be able to fall asleep anymore, so he decided to get out of bed. He deliberated whether he should wake up his mom, get a glass of milk, or just walk around the house when he realised that a bright, white light shone through his window. He looked outside and what he saw left him in awe.

His mother taught him about the moon and the stars. He saw pictures of them in the storybooks she would read to him, so he knew what to call the objects in the sky before his eyes even if they did not exactly look like the pictures. The point was, he knew what they were, but he usually fell asleep before they came out so he never really saw them in person before.

Until now that is… and they were _beautiful_.

Tsuna rushed towards his bedroom window and excitedly climbed up his chair and desk. He fiddled with the lock on the panel for a few minutes but eventually managed to unclasp it and slide the window open. He shivered when a blast of chilly autumn wind hit him but it did not deter his desire to gaze at the heavenly bodies.

'_Mama was right! They're really pretty!'_ His fingers itched to draw the sight before his eyes. He frowned, however, when he noticed that the electric poles and the other houses blocked his view of the spectacular scene.

'_Higher… I need to go higher…'_ He thought as he carefully looked out the window and then around it. _'There! The roof… but Mama told me not to climb high places when no one was watching me…'_ He bit his lip uncertainly, conflicted. He looked up once more and was again entranced by the sky. _'But Mama… doesn't really have to know… Plus, it's my birthday! I'm a year older… I can do it… I can step… just over here and climb up there… and the roof's not far from my window…'_

Lips stretched into the mischievous grin all children seemed to be capable of doing naturally. Tsuna climbed back down his desk and ran to his closet to throw on a hoodie over his pyjamas. He returned to his desk to grab a small satchel he asked his mother to buy for him so he could carry his art supplies wherever he went. He slipped it on his back and climbed up his furniture again. He took a deep breath to calm the excited beats of his heart as he stepped out his window and onto the ledge.

The brunet carefully held onto the wooden frame of the glass as he reached up to his window's upper ledge. He tiptoed, jumped a few times, and reached out with his arm until he finally managed to grab it. After that, it was a simple matter to bring himself up and stand there.

He grinned as he panted from the exertion then finally he reached for the edge of the rooftop. It was a little higher so it was farther away from him than the upper ledge of his window had been but he was confident. He managed to do it once, why not a second time? Decision made, he tiptoed, jumped, and reached for it again. On his last try, and with one big jump, he managed to get a grip on it with both his hands. Then he looked down.

He panicked and one of his hands lost its grip on the roof's edge.

Suddenly, he found himself hung on the edge of the roof by one, small hand. He could not let go because his last jump brought him far from the upper ledge of his window and he had nothing close to land on. He understood then, as he looked at the ground, that it was a terrifyingly long way down. He fell many times before, and it always hurt, but from this high up, it would be an instant…

'_Death…'_ The single word pierced through his frightened thoughts. _'Mama is scared of that… and she's always sad… when I get hurt… she said that, if you get hurt enough, you'd… die… and we'd never see each other again…'_ The image of his mother's tearful face, so similar to the one she made when he gave his present to her on her birthday, flashed through his mind. His eyes widened and he thrashed. His single hand tightened its grip on the roof.

'_I don't want to die!'_ He yelled in his head, eyes squeezed shut as tears gathered at the corners. _'If I die… if I die… Mama will be sad! So I can't… I can't die!'_

A spark within him flickered and roared in tandem with his desperation. Warmth flooded his being and his eyes pried wide open to reveal searing orange irises. His mouth moved to let out a silent gasp. His mind calmed and his flails gradually halted as he surveyed his body and saw embers surround him. Even though part of him was astonished and confused, he grasped onto the instinct he found, this _Will_, to survive.

Fire enveloped his feet and he found the strength to raise his other arm and get a firm hold on the rooftop's edge with both hands. Somehow, he knew how to increase the strength of the fire and he suddenly found it easier to bring his entire body to safety. When his mind realised that he was _'Safesafefinally_safe_'_ the comforting heat left him slowly, as though it were reluctant to return to wherever it came from.

Tsuna laid down on his back as he caught his breath and stared at the dark sky filled with stars that shone and twinkled, and ignored how his satchel dug into his back. When his rapid heartbeat slowed and his mind had exhausted itself with replays of what had just happened to him, he shot up as though electrocuted. He sat there and touched different parts of his body in disbelief, eyes full of wonder.

'_Just now… what was that?'_

An awed grin stretched across his juvenile face. _'So—'_

"—cool! Like those huge robots on TV!"

* * *

"Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars, to change the world." ~ Harriet Tubman

* * *

_**AN: While I was writing the last scene, I was actually listening to the **_**Tsuna Awakens OST**_** so … yeah. That's probably why **_**this**_** happened XD**_

_**If you have any suggestions or stuff you want to see, feel free to review or PM me about them!**_

_**\- Sora**_


	6. The Yamamoto Family

**DISCLAIMER is in CHAPTER 1.**

* * *

**OMNISCIENCE**

**Insight**

**Chapter 2.50: The Yamamoto Family**

* * *

"I know I'm weird, but sometimes it makes you laugh, and that just makes me super happy." ~ Unknown

* * *

_("Your smile. No, actually, everything about you. It's all so… It feels so… fake.")_

Tsuyoshi grit his teeth. _'Shigure Sōen Ryū, Defensive Seventh Form: Spraying Rain!'_

He spun with his sword held firmly in his hands and dirt kicked up around him to create a shield that would blind any attacker.

_("I want you to stop.")_

He stopped and grasped his sword with both hands then dug into the dirt._ 'Shigure Sōen Ryū, Defensive Second Form: Rolling Rain!'_ He used his strength and technique to create a pillar of dirt to surround his right side then dug into the ground on his left to do the same. Immediately afterwards he contracted his body in order to defend against an opponent better.

_("How—? Why…?")_

The memory made him shoot back up to his feet and he stumbled forwards. He dropped his sword and it landed on the ground with a clatter. He could practically hear his sensei berate him for his treatment of the weapon but it had just felt so _heavy_ all of a sudden that he could no longer carry it.

_("Because you look like you're in so much pain and I—" she bit her lip and shook her head. "N-Never mind," she turned and ran away.)_

'_That girl…'_ His fists clenched. He looked down at the sword by his feet._ 'Shigure Sōen Ryū, Offensive Third Form: Last Minute Rain!'_

He kicked the sword with his foot and it flew forwards to stab—

"GAH!"

—at a spot just above an unsuspecting Iemitsu's head, where the sword lodged itself into the tree behind him.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Tsuyoshi?! You're supposed to keep me alive, you know!"

Tsuyoshi blinked and his mind cleared enough to register his surroundings once again. He stared in confusion at his charge before he realised that the blond must have approached him sometime during his training. He immediately felt embarrassed that he had not sensed the other's presence sooner.

He laughed. "Sorry, sorry! I didn't notice you there and, anyways, you shouldn't come in while I'm training, you know? I could have cut your head off!"

"More like stabbed my brain," Iemitsu muttered as he stared at the sword. It looked like it had sunk into the wood about a third of the way through and he gulped. "I'll never get over how you're a no-name hitman when you're seriously skilled. What's the name of your sword style again?"

Tsuyoshi walked to where the teen stood and pulled out his sword with ease. "Shigure Sōen Ryū," he stated proudly. "You should beat the name of the perfect and flawless, strongest and most invincible sword style into your skull, because you're probably the only one who'll live to remember its name. Most people die once they've heard it," he teased.

The blond paled. "R-Right. Anyways, I just came to tell you that I'm going to hang out with some friends after school, so I won't be home until late."

"Alright, then. No drinking, got me? No drugs, either. No fighting and absolutely no wo—"

"I got it, I got it! I know the drill, okay!" Iemitsu exclaimed, his cheeks red.

"—but, if you _must_, make sure you bring protect—"

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!"

Tsuyoshi laughed and, after a moment, sobered. He grinned, eyes not quite gentle but not hard either. "Are you sure you want to go out today? They say a typhoon's gonna hit the area sometime in the afternoon."

The teen rolled his eyes. "I'll be fine. Like I said, I know the drill. I'll contact you if a life-threatening situation that I can't handle comes up."

The dark-haired man hit the back of his charge's head.

"Ow! What the fuck?"

"Baka-'mitsu, that's not the drill! You're supposed to send me the distress signal when _any_ life-threatening situation comes up; you're not supposed to 'handle' one on your own!"

"But I'm strong enough!"

"That's not the point!"

* * *

Yamamoto Amaya had just finished her shower when the previously gentle rain turned into a torrential one. _'So the typhoon's here already, huh? Guess the forecast was right for once. I'm actually glad Baseball practice was cancelled. If anyone on the team played in this weather they'd get sick the next day, and we have a competition coming up.'_

She grabbed a bottle of milk from the fridge and looked out her window. She twisted the cap open and began to drink, eyes thoughtful as she looked out onto the street of her neighbourhood. The clouds were so thick that none of the afternoon light could pierce through them. It almost looked like nighttime.

As she moved her arm to take another gulp of milk, a figure outside caught her eye. It looked like someone was… running?

'_No way. Out in this rain? They'd have to be crazy…'_ She pressed her face to the window and squinted. That figure looked oddly familiar…

Just then, the figure ran underneath the lamppost in front of her house and she saw his face clearly.

'_Tsu-Tsuyoshi-san?'_ She thought in shock. _'What's he doing out there? He'll get sick!'_ Then, worry gripped her heart. She remembered how he said that he was Iemitsu's guardian so was it possible that…?

Her features took on a grim but determined look. She ascertained the direction Tsuyoshi had headed for then changed her clothes into ones more suitable for the rain. After that, she grabbed a waterproof bag and stuffed it with towels and some of the medical supplies she had on hand, and then she ran down the stairs and headed towards the door.

"Kaasan, Tousan! I forgot something at school so I'll just be heading out to get it! Don't worry, I'm wearing my raincoat and boots and I'll bring an umbrella!"

"Okay, stay safe Ama-chan!"

"Take care of yourself!"

"Hai!" Amaya called back as she closed the door behind her and, with no hesitation, ran into the pouring rain. The heavy water pelted her umbrella and her boots sloshed against the liquid that had gathered on the ground. She remembered that Tsuyoshi had gone straight with no sign of stopping and picked up her pace. If she was right, then he must have headed for the forest on the outskirts of Namimori. Her street was the quickest way there.

* * *

She had no idea how long she ran until the edge of the forest came in her line of sight. She could faintly see the silhouettes of three figures there, two on her left and one on her right. When she got closer, she saw that one of the figures on her left laid sprawled on the ground in a dead faint while the other figure stood in front of the person with a—a gun?!

Her eyes widened in shock as they moved to where the gun pointed. It was Tsuyoshi and… in his hands… was a sword.

'_What's… What's going on?'_

Instinct told her that she was better off quiet so she slinked away as carefully as she could behind a tree. They were too far for her to hear anything but she reassured herself that that meant they would not be able to hear her. At the very least, she could see what was going on with only a little difficulty.

Then the man shot his gun.

Amaya's hand flashed her mouth to stifle the gasp that escaped it but, as she continued to look, Tsuyoshi appeared to be unharmed. She saw how he had his sword in front of him in a defensive position and furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. When did he move…?

The man continued to shoot and Amaya watched in awe as the swordsman deflected all of the bullets with his sword, his every motion a blur to her. She felt that even without the rain, she still would not have been able to follow them.

When the man next pulled his gun's trigger, no bullets shot out. He threw away the gun and unsheathed a dagger from the inner lapels of his suit. Amaya wanted to laugh. What could a dagger do against a sword? She felt confident that this was already Tsuyoshi's win.

However, Tsuyoshi never let up from his tense pose. He readied his weapon seriously.

Then they charged.

They moved almost too fast for Amaya to see. Though Tsuyoshi dealt blow after impressive blow and did not let up his assault, the man deflected him with his dagger just as imposingly. Then the two men jumped apart. Tsuyoshi breathed heavily even as he held his sword in front of him while his opponent barely looked like he lost any breath.

Then the man laughed, his dagger held aloft almost lazily. It was obvious that he was taunting the other. Amaya felt her temper rise but when she looked at Tsuyoshi, she saw that he remained collected and focussed. He took a deep breath, flipped his sword so that it faced him and tucked it to his side. He held it by the hilt with one hand while his other hovered over it, as though ready to draw the weapon at any second. His opponent, on the other hand, used his dagger to pick at his fingernails indifferently. Then the man sighed, shook his head, and charged.

Tsuyoshi took in another deep breath and ran towards him.

Amaya felt faint as they quickly approached each other. She watched Tsuyoshi as he unsheathed his sword and then—

—it was over.

The next thing she knew, the man lay on the ground, unmoving, while Tsuyoshi stood with his back to the downed body, eyes closed and sword outstretched.

She let out a breath she did not realise she had held in. _'That was more intense than any Baseball game I've ever watched in my _life_.'_ At that thought, she looked at the body anxiously. _'Is he…?'_

She snapped out of her thoughts when Tsuyoshi moved to run towards the third figure who had laid unconscious throughout the whole fight. The dark-haired teen dropped his sword as he knelt beside the person and lifted him. When Amaya registered the person's face, she ran towards them.

It was Iemitsu!

The sound of her boots alerted her presence to Tsuyoshi. She saw that he had initially moved to grab his sword but stopped when she got closer. Instead, he gazed at her with wide eyes and an even wider mouth. "Y-You're…!"

"Let me help," she said determinedly as she crouched down and grabbed one of Iemitsu's arms to sling it over her shoulder. Somehow, she managed to get all three of them under the cover of her umbrella. "I saw you running past my house and I thought something might have happened to Ie-kun. I… I saw the whole thing." She bit her lip as she glanced at the body of the man with the dagger. "I-Is… Is he…?"

"Dead?" Tsuyoshi continued blandly. He was still processing her words. "… No, he's not. I only dealt him enough damage to knock him out."

Amaya sighed in relief. "Thank god. Come on, let's get you guys somewhere dry."

The dark-haired man appeared to hesitate. He glanced at her, at Iemitsu, and then at the downed man, who tried to kill him. "… Wait. Can you carry Iemitsu? I need to bring that guy along."

"What? Why! He tried to kill you, in case you forgot!"

"And I almost killed him," Tsuyoshi snapped, his eyes dark. "Don't forget that."

She said nothing in reply. Tsuyoshi picked up his sword and sheathed it as he stood. Then he moved towards the man and picked him up under his arm with ease.

"Come on," he said, his back to her. "I know Namimori Shrine is nearby. We should take shelter there until the rain lets up."

* * *

It took a while, and many awkward silences, but Amaya eventually got the whole story out of Tsuyoshi as they waited inside the shrine.

"Wow."

"Wow? I tell you I'm a hitman with more than a little blood on my hands and that's all you can say?" Tsuyoshi felt slightly hysterical.

"What _can_ I say?" Amaya defended herself. "What do you even do when two people you _thought_ were normal turns out to be a part of the Italian Mafia?"

"Scream? Run for the hills? Go to the nearest police station and turn said Mafia members in?" He suggested helpfully, though half-heartedly.

"I don't scream and I don't run." She frowned. "And… I wouldn't turn you in."

Tsuyoshi looked taken aback. "Why not?"

"Because… you're not bad people. I can tell that much."

He turned away from her. "Weren't you listening to me? I've killed people before and I'm going to do it again. It's my job. It's what I _do_."

"You haven't killed me yet," she pointed out.

"I have no reason to," he snapped back.

"Then, that's a good thing, right? You have morals. You're not a bad person, Tsuyoshi-san, despite what you insist on thinking about yourself." Amaya laid down on her back. She ignored how the cold floor and her wet clothes made it a very uncomfortable position to be in. "I think I've finally figured it out."

Tsuyoshi glanced at her, uncertain. "Figured what out?"

"Why your face bothered me the first day we met."

He felt his ire grow. "Yeah? Care to enlighten me, then?"

She lifted her head a bit to meet his eyes and grinned at him softly. "You were pushing yourself too hard."

His confusion must have shown on his face because she sat up to elaborate.

"You're obviously forcing yourself to go through with this whole hitman thing. You should just stop."

Tsuyoshi roughly scratched his head. "It's not that simple. I can't just _stop_, I…" He looked at his sword helplessly. "This sword style means _everything_ to me. When I had nothing, I just had to pick up my sword and—" He sighed in frustration. "You wouldn't understand."

"Try me," she challenged.

He glanced at her in annoyance. "Shigure Sōen Ryū is a sword style for _killing_. People who know of it call it a 'Sword of Destruction'. It develops and refines itself with each successor, which is why it calls itself the 'strongest'. And that title of strength attracts opponents, making it a target for swordsmen everywhere. If you lose while wielding it, you lose your life, and that means that the Shigure Sōen Ryū you developed just _wasn't _strong enough and it would be cut off until only the 'strongest' version of the style is left.

"That's why I joined the Mafia. It's full of strong opponents and I thought that, if I was there, then I could refine my technique. Then the sword style that means everything to me _would_ be everything. It would be the strongest. I want to prove that I'm worthy of inheriting it and the only way to do that is through my version of it.

"But strength… strength is being able to cut down your enemies. And I still haven't made an eighth form that can do that. The hitman thing is a condition. It would be my job to take out my targets and I thought that, while I did that, I would be able to make a strong form that would let me inherit the style. Then it would finally be _mine_."

Amaya crossed her arms and closed her eyes in thought. She hummed underneath her breath.

Then she threw her arms up and crossed it behind her head. "Nope! I still don't get it!"

Tsuyoshi felt a vein pop in his brain. "What's not to get? It's a sword style for killing. If I don't kill, then I can't prove that it's the strongest. People like me, people who are _devoted_ to _killing_, are the kind of people who keep this sword style alive!"

Amaya opened one eye to gaze at the older teen. "But it doesn't make sense. When did strength ever equal to being able to kill someone? Isn't a swordsman stronger for being able to _refrain_ from killing their opponent when they wield a weapon designed to do that?"

He gripped his sword in his hand so tightly that it began to shake. "T-That's…"

"Like what you did with that guy," she gestured to the still unconscious man behind them, tied to a pillar. "It's easy to go all out. It's like in Baseball! There's this one guy in the pros that _always_ hits a homerun, to the point that his coach told him to hold back during practice because they couldn't afford to keep replacing the balls he hits out of the field," she laughed brightly. "I remember that he even admitted in one of his interviews that he had a harder time _not_ hitting a homerun than he did going all out. So… isn't kendō kinda the same? If it's so easy to kill someone with a sword, then, wouldn't you be able to say a swordsman is strong when they don't?"

Tsuyoshi bowed his head, conflicted and thoughtful at the same time.

"Besides," Amaya continued cheerfully, "that last move you did didn't kill that guy, so I don't think Shigure Sōen Ryū is only for killing!"

"Uh…" He scratched his cheek with one finger. "That wasn't exactly… Shigure Sōen Ryū."

Her eyebrows scrunched up at him in confusion.

"None of the forms I knew would have helped in that situation and I really wanted to get Iemitsu out of there. Not to mention I needed the guy alive so I could get some information out of him. So I kind of… made that move on the spot."

Amaya's jaw fell. "On the spot? That's amazing! That technique is definitely strong enough to be your eighth form!"

He smiled a little weakly. "I don't know about that… There's a kind of test I have to take that would determine if the technique I made is good enough to be the eighth form of something like Shigure Sōen Ryū."

"Eh… Really? That sounds complicated. Then, you should take the test as soon as possible!"

"Wha—? No way! I'm not taking the test until I'm 100% sure that the technique I made is strong!"

"And I'm telling you right now that that technique is plenty strong! Just take the test! What, is there some sort of prohibition or something? Can you only take the test once?"

"N… No, you can take it as many times as you need to until you succeed…"

"Then you should take it! You've got nothing to lose and you'll never get anything done if you're too scared to see if your techniques are enough for you to be worthy."

Tsuyoshi scowled. "I'm not scared!"

"Then promise me!" Amaya held out her pinkie pompously. "Pinkie promise me that you'll take that test as soon as you can, using the technique you made today. If you don't, then you're a scaredy-cat!"

"I already told you, I'm not scared!"

"Then promise me!"

Reluctantly, he locked his pinkie with the girl's own. "Fine, fine. It's a promise."

"And you better not break it." She nodded to herself, pleased with the outcome.

Tsuyoshi let out a breath and with it his annoyance. He glanced at Amaya from the corner of his eye and a small smile tilted his lips upwards.

Amaya saw it and paused. She stared at him gently. "That's better," she said softly.

Tsuyoshi blinked and tilted his head. "What is?"

"That smile. You should smile like that more," she grinned at him, largely enough that it reached her eyes.

His face heated up at that and he looked away from her as fast as he could. Still, his smile did not falter, and Amaya laughed at him.

He felt… happy.

"Hey."

"Hm? What's up?"

"If that technique passes the test, I'm gonna need a name for it."

Amaya hummed. "Did you have something in mind?"

Tsuyoshi flopped onto the floor, his eyes unfocussed as he stared at the ceiling. "Nothing concrete but… I do know it needs to have something to do with rain."

"Rain, huh?" She stared up at the sky. "How about… 'Shinotsuku Ame'?"

"Shinotsuku Ame?"

"Un! In honour of the typhoon approaching when you created it," she pointed outside the shrine. "A rain so fierce that it feels like you were being stabbed. That's what Shinotsuku Ame is."

Tsuyoshi felt his grin widen. _'Shigure Sōen Ryū, Offensive Eighth Form: Pelting Rain, huh?_

'_I really… want this technique to pass that test. After all… I created it when I tried to save a friend, instead of when I had to end a foe._

'_But most of all… because it's a technique named by someone as gentle as a drizzle, a rain that washed away the blood on my hands and, for once, made me feel… clean.'_

* * *

_(Year Four)_

Yamamoto Takeshi was a normal, happy boy. His days were constantly full of fun stuff to do, new things to learn, and endless warmth from his parents. Unlike most kids his age, he actually liked it better when his parents paid more attention to each other instead of him.

In the rare times when he had nothing to do that could occupy his attention, he usually watched his mother and father as they went about their day. It was not a boring past time; in fact, he liked to notice the little things they did that somehow managed to convey so much more. The way his daddy would automatically look up when his mommy entered the room, an involuntary smile on his face. The way his mommy, on the days she had nothing to do, would be contented with watching his father work behind the sushi bar and admiring his skill with the knife. He also noticed it at the times he would try to explain something new he learned or saw in his own way: by using sounds and actions instead of actual words. His mother would grin at his father impishly while the man simply laughed and humoured his son by interpreting his instinctive learning curve into actual words.

They were not obvious about their affection as other couples were, but it was there all the same. Takeshi often wondered what it was like to have someone like that, and what they did to make themselves different from the relationship kids like him had with other people. He asked them once, explained it in the only way he knew how until his inquiry finally got across to them.

(He really had to work on the talking thing.)

He was more than a little disappointed, though, when they just laughed at him weirdly before they said that they would explain it all to him (and in detail, he made them promise, and he could not understand why his father snorted and his mother turned bright red) when he was older. That was not fair to him since they usually answered any other question he had with no hesitation.

He could not wait to grow up then.

Growing up was also something he thought about often. Since he was still young, no adult expected him to have a certain answer, but if he was asked what he wanted to be when he was older there was always one thing he was sure of,

"I wanna be like Tousan!"

The one time he proclaimed that, his mother laughed at him and teasingly asked if he wanted to be a sushi chef as well. He thought for a long while then, before he finally replied, "No… Not a sushi chef. I just wanna be like Tousan."

His parents were bemused but to the little Yamamoto it was as clear as day. It was not as if he thought being a sushi chef was lame, he just did not think it was for him, and that was his dad's job. It also was not as if he wanted to be _exactly_ like his dad, he just wanted to be _like_ him. His dad was cool and confident and his mom loved him. He understood that his dad would always be his mom's #1 but that didn't change his desire to be the best, and whoever his mom thought was the best had to be the, well, greatest!

Therefore, when he found out his dad used to be a swordsman Takeshi wanted to be one as well.

(He saw a bunch of shows with these awesome sword-wielding people and whenever he did, he would get this amazing thrill deep in his bones. He just _knew_, somehow, that that was the thing for him, that he could live with himself being cool like that. Even his dad knew how to be cool like that!)

The day he asked his father to teach him how to use a sword brought on the first crack in their perfect world.

Tsuyoshi and Amaya grew tense as they shared wide-eyed and worried looks. The blue-haired woman was the first to regain her composure, amazingly enough, and she gently questioned her son why he wanted to learn the way of the sword ("Kendō," she said).

However, through her light tone, the black-haired boy still noticed her anxiety. Although, at the time, he could not place a name to the emotion. All he knew was that it was bad and that his gut warned him of some sort of danger.

He still managed to swallow his nervousness in the face of his mother's own though, and with his usual grin, he said with conviction, "Because I wanna be like Tousan!"

His father tensed then and gripped his old sword—not Shigure Kintoki, it was his other sword, his bloodied one, the one he _thought_ he hid well enough but evidently _not_ if his three-year-old son could still manage to find it—in his hand so tight his knuckles turned white. Amaya shot her husband a concerned look before she brought her attention back to her son. She said to him, "Take-kun, I don't think the sword is the best thing for you to learn right now, so…" She thought quickly of an alternative, _any_ alternative, to move his attention elsewhere and then it her, "starting tomorrow, I'll teach you everything I know about Baseball instead, okay? And don't look through your father's old things anymore. Promise me that."

Takeshi wanted to pout, to complain. He wanted to learn how to use a sword, not Baseball. Nevertheless, he saw the way his mother's eyes shone beneath her concern and he hesitated. Baseball, it seemed, was another thing his mother loved besides him and his father. He did not want to reject something she loved so, with his usual grin, albeit a slightly smaller version, he nodded.

From the corner of his eyes, he saw his father finally relax.

The next day, Amaya taught her son how to play Baseball. Not long after he learned the basics, she arranged a mock game with the other kids in their neighbourhood. He even managed to make his first few friends.

Because of Baseball.

It was not as if Takeshi hated Baseball, but… he did not particularly _like_ it either. He just played the sport because his parents looked happier when he did. The rules were hard though, very hard to learn since he rejected learning from the rulebook (the words were too small and it just had too many pages!). Eventually, after constant training, he got a hang of it and he was surprised to discover he was actually good at it. His form was decent, he instinctively knew the right technique to use when pitching or batting, and he had good speed, stamina, and strength for his age.

"A natural," his mother would always say with pride whenever he did something right that usually took many more hours of training. His father would just grin at him but he too was proud.

Moreover, that filled him with his own pride and happiness, as well as a sense of accomplishment, that he was doing something _right_. He was not as smart as other kids were, he knew, but at least through this he could make it up to his parents who tried so hard for him, so… he continued to play. It did not change the fact he felt something in the game was lacking, though… that he still thought Kendō was better than Baseball (though sometimes he felt that _just_ learning Kendō was not quite right as well). It did not change the fact that he did not quite like Baseball as much as his mom did but… he could grow to like it.

Thus, when he got a new friend's—_'Yoshi-kun was so cute! Soft, too. And he was really good at that drawing thing!'_—gift, he actually liked it. It was a flat, round, and blue pillow; not quite the shade his mom's hair was but it was pretty all the same. There were white, intricate stitches that curved outwards at the sides and that was when he realized it looked like a baseball. A flat, soft, and blue baseball, but a baseball nonetheless.

He grinned as he hugged the pillow to his chest. Yoshi-kun was not like the friends he made playing Baseball, he was the son of one of his dad's old friends that his parents asked him to play with because he was "shy". Besides, if he was the kid of a friend of his father's, then he was automatically cool in his book.

Ah, but even if he felt that way at first, he also found himself that he liked the other boy a whole lot more when he met him, and even more when he opened his present. His parents probably told Yoshi-kun's mom that he played Baseball, which was probably why they got him that particular gift. Still, he did not mind at all, it just told him how much Yoshi-kun wanted to be friends and how he thought hard about what he might like even if they were not friends yet!

Despite Takeshi already having friends, he still did not know what it was like when another person who was not family genuinely thought about him. His friends did not spend time thinking about things like that, they just immediately assumed that since he played Baseball, then he would like to play Baseball all the time.

Yoshi-kun was the first person to give him a Baseball gift that was not Baseball!

The black-haired boy blinked before he laughed to himself quietly. _'I'm getting dizzy again… I really shouldn't think so hard.'_

He thought about his birthday party with Yoshi-kun. That whole time, Yoshi-kun rarely looked him in the eye while they talked or played together but when Nana-obachan walked inside to take a picture of them and he shared a grin with the brunet...

Just one look in Yoshi-kun's eyes and he could tell that the shorter boy was so, very… _happy_. He just sat there with him but he already looked so happy.

'_Because of me,'_ Takeshi thought goofily as he looked down at the pillow in his arms. _'Maybe Baseball isn't so bad… I still wanna learn Kendō one day, though.'_

* * *

"I prefer to be crazy and happy rather than normal and bitter." ~ Paulo Coelho


	7. His True First Time

_**AN: This chapter is inspired by another fic. I have permission from the author to use their idea and have adopted it as a headcanon. Note that I said "inspired" and not taken. The following events are very different from the original to incorporate it into my story.**_

_**However, I honestly and truly recommend you read it. It's called **_"Beast Rising"_** by **_wolfsrainrules_**. It's an amazing work of art so please support the author!**_

**Warning/s: Dark themes.**

**DISCLAIMER is in Chapter 1.**

* * *

A man patiently sat in a dimly lit room, still as a statue. Then a phone rang and broke the silence. He answered the call immediately but maintained his composure so as not to betray his eagerness.

"Did you get the information I asked for?" He spoke in accented Japanese.

A soft laugh came from the other end, one that could only belong to a woman. "Your suspicions were certainly correct," she answered in a blasé manner, and unlike the man she spoke the language fluently, "though the Young Lion is undoubtedly quite a fool for slipping up, leaving such an obvious trail."

He scoffed. "It may be obvious to you now, but you didn't even notice how frequently he visited Japan and kept in contact with someone there until I pointed it out."

"Don't mock my skills," the woman snapped. "I'm your only shot at getting your revenge and if you piss me off I just might dissolve our contract."

"Tch. Fine. Tell me what you've got for me," the man demanded and shifted to a more comfortable position.

She muttered something incomprehensible under her breath then proceeded to relay her findings, "The Young Lion ordered a package be delivered to a small Residential Area under the name 'Sawada Iemitsu'. The arrival date listed was the 14th of October—"

He interrupted her, "Did you discover what the package was?"

She made an irritated noise. "Yes. It was a kid's bike."

The man paused as his mind translated her words. He held the phone in front of him incredulously before he returned it to his ear, "Excuse me?"

He could practically hear the scowl in her voice. "A kid's bike, you retarded bastard! I saw it with my own eyes; it had training wheels and everything!"

He was now completely and utterly flabbergasted. "A _bike_? Why would he send a _bike_ of all things?"

"Now, that's where it gets interesting. Naturally, I kept track of the package and came across something fascinating…"

"Just spit it out already."

"I already told you all the information you need to know to figure it out," the woman retorted. "It was sent to a Residential Area. The house it was left at, in particular, was occupied by a young woman, possible in her early-twenties, and a child who looked to be her son, around four or five years of age. The name-plate on the gate's post simply bore the name 'Sawada', the same last name the Young Lion used to order the package in the first place."

His mind worked quickly to make sense of all of the information. Eventually, he came to the same conclusion as the woman. "Impossible…" He murmured in slight disbelief. A few seconds passed before a devilish smirk made its way to his lips. "Oh, this is absolutely _perfect_…"

"So?" She prompted him, her voice careless and neutral. "What do you want me to do now?"

"What's their security detail?"

"As of the moment, I don't see anyone, but I'm not entirely sure since I called you as soon as I confirmed everything. It's either the Young Lion doesn't particularly think they should be protected or that he never took in the possibility of his enemies finding out."

"I'll bet you it's the latter," the man stated bitterly. "That fool spouts the importance of family more than he's killed, and he's arrogant enough to think the enemies he's made have lesser brains than him. No, that man wouldn't leave them completely unprotected but he wouldn't make their security detail stifling either. Keep watching them and ascertain just how well-defended they are."

"That still doesn't answer the question of what you want me to do with them."

He thought for a moment. "At the first chance you get, corner the boy. The child's trust would be easier to gain than the mother's. If he doesn't end up being as annoying as his father, I want you to take him and bring him to me. I'll decide what to do next when I meet him."

"And if he does end up being as much of a nuisance as his father?"

"You're a Hitman, are you not?" He replied dryly. "Do what you do best. It doesn't matter to me as I will benefit from it either way and witness the _Young Lion of Vongola's_," he sneered, "despairing face."

"Of course," she drawled.

They hung up simultaneously.

* * *

**OMNISCIENCE**

**Arc I: Childhood Days**

**Chapter 3: His True First Time**

* * *

"Sometimes one moment is enough to forget life, but sometimes life is not enough to forget that very moment." ~ Jim Morrison

* * *

Four-year-old Sawada Tsunayoshi laid sprawled under the shade of the tree in the front yard of his home, the bike his father sent him for his birthday beside him. It was considerably larger than he was but, as his mother reasoned, that could only be a good thing. He would still be able to use it when he grew bigger until they could buy one without training wheels.

However, this was not the reason he pouted at the foliage above him.

Ever since the incident with the fire on his birthday, he constantly attempted to release them again and, every time, he failed. He knew they were there, he could feel the same warm fire buried deep within him and it filled a space he had not even realised lacked something. No matter how hard he tried, though, he was unable to make it come out again—even from his feet—and it was _weird_. He could feel it blaze, churn, and burn inside him, could feel it intensely long to be free from restraints that, for the life of the brunet, he could not seem to break. All his efforts only made him look like he needed to use the toilet.

_He_ wanted the fire to come out. The _fire_ wanted to come out. What more did he need to do?

The pout on the boy's face faded to make way for a contemplative twist of lips, an odd expression on his childish features. He turned to his side, away from his bike and towards the metal-and-cement fence that surrounded his house. His eyes lidded languidly at the smell of earthy grass and the feel of its ticklish texture, at the sound of the wind as it passed through the neighbourhood and the sense of muted beams of warm sunlight as they pierced through the greenery above him. He yawned and the corners of his eyes wetted with the action before he reached up to rub them away.

This was another thing he noticed change after his birthday. His senses had sharpened to the point he was constantly aware of his surroundings unless he purposely ignored or blocked them out. He would always be distracted otherwise and plagued with headaches due to sensory overload. Though a plus from this was, whenever he focused on a single task, he did it better than he usually would, be it lessons from his mother or improving his sketches. (Sketches that rapidly approached the realm of acceptably realistic art.)

Clarity suddenly returned to his lambent gaze and he blinked slowly. His senses were not the only thing to mature ever since that day and, right now, _it_ called him to attention.

The Feeling he used to have now felt as if it gave him actual instructions to follow, just without the use of words. When compared with the vague emotions back then, which gave impressions of what he should do, it was a marked improvement. It was almost like a voice but at the same time not quite that.

Right now, it told him that someone currently watched him.

The sudden flare of paranoia made the hairs on the back of his arms rise. His back partly tensed as his subtly orange eyes trailed over his environment while his other senses strained themselves to catch what exactly had alarmed him in the first place. There was a slight shift in the air, in the wind, just around the boundaries of his home.

This was not the first, and he felt that it would be far from the last, time he felt as though someone watched him. He was never quite sure how he knew or how he was certain that what he felt was true. He was not sure of why he felt these things either. However, based on the strength of his feelings, he cautiously placed his trust on his instincts as they, to date, have never led him wrong.

To be fair, he _had_ noticed that people sometimes watched him and his mother under the pretence that they simply passed by his house. Despite the fact that each of those people looked vastly different from each other, he could not help but notice how they acted. Their mannerisms were so _similar_. To Tsuna, whenever his mother gave a friendly wave to any of these Passer-by, and they responded in kind, they seemed too _familiar_ with them than the rest of the townspeople. He was sure his mother did not know any of them so he concluded that that could only mean two things.

One: They were checking up on his mother and him.

Two: They were doing it for his father.

Those were the only explanations he could think of that felt right, as the Passers-by had to know them from _someone_. He did not quite understand why they never mentioned they were friends with his dad but he did not call them out on it either. The Feeling told him he was not supposed to know.

However, this particular watcher, who made the hairs at the back of his neck prickle uncomfortably, was not like the ones who simply passed by to check up on them.

He sat up slowly and a bad feeling prevented him from perusing his surroundings obviously. He should not alert his watcher that he knew they were there. His gaze caught a butterfly and he followed it mindlessly as it flew the length of the fence before it landed on a bush in the yard.

Lucky! His watcher was there, just a little beyond the bush and his line of sight. From his peripheral, he caught the almost non-existent rustle of leaves. The wind had ceased a while ago so it had no reason to move unless, of course, someone hid there.

He had felt this watcher's presence on and off for the past week now and it made him wary. No one had ever paid so much attention to him and his mother for such a prolonged period of time, especially not the same person. He did not how he knew it was the same person but the presence he felt in the times before and the one he currently felt was the same. Why would someone who checked up on them behave so differently from the others unless they were up to no good?

The vibes he got from the person also unnerved him to no end. It rather reminded him of the tiger he watched on TV with his mom. It prowled around, observed its prey, and waited for the perfect moment to attack and devour it with relish.

(Nana closed his eyes when the tiger pounced but she forgot about his ears. The sound the tiger made as it ripped its prey's flesh apart gave him nightmares for days. His mother promised they would instead go to the zoo when he was older.)

The Sawada house's front door opened and Nana stepped out. Her chocolate eyes moved over the yard before she spotted her son under the tree with his bike beside him. "Tsu-kun! Do you want to come with me for some early Christmas shopping?"

The little boy blinked as he reluctantly tore his gaze away from the butterfly to meet the expectant face of his mother. He forced a cheerful smile onto his face and pushed away his trepidation to reply with a bright agreement. He stood up and shot one last look to where he assumed the Watcher hid before he ran up to his mother and inside the safety of her arms.

It would be best if he came along. He noticed that the suffocating presence lessened when more people were around and he would feel better if his mother was out of the house for a while. He could not quite push away the impression that it was not he _and_ his mother the person watched.

Tsuna's Feeling told him that he was the Watcher's prey.

* * *

The woman cursed inwardly when the kid's eyes shortly connected with hers. She held herself still inside the shrub and relaxed only when the mother-son duo entered their abode. She looked around her surroundings and, when she noticed no one was around, left the hedge plant to find some other incognito area down the road. She calculated the quickest and most obvious route to the Namimori Shopping District and settled herself in a suitable area to remain unnoticed. She waited in boredom for a few minutes until her target finally arrived together with his guardian. She followed them discreetly.

'_That kid…'_ Her eyes narrowed as she watched them walk down the street happily, practically carelessly.

Only practically, however, because she saw how the child tensed when her gaze would stay on him for even a second too long. How could he feel…?

_'No… Impossible…'_

She had heard of the Vongola's rumoured Hyper Intuition, one of the many secrets to the Famiglia's success and said to run in only the Boss' blood and thus his Heirs. However, she had never heard of the Outside Adviser possessing the same capability. Was it possible for the son of CEDEF's Boss to have Vongola's most prized trait?

The female briefly considered to report this to her employer before she dismissed the thought. She already had her orders and she did not want to call the man again; it would only place her in an even worse mood. The boy already appealed enough to her maternal instincts so a reminder of what she had to do was unwelcome, much less appreciated.

That did not mean she would not be able to get the job done when the time called for it. It was just that she did not want what was left of her conscience to plague her further. That and she felt quite vindictive so she delayed her mission until she absolutely had to do it. Childish, but if it would irritate her employer she considered it a win. She also reasoned to herself that she still had to gather a sufficient amount information on the security detail the Young Lion had in place for his secret family. As it was, there was almost nothing solidly put in place, which made her job that much easier as well as harder.

Harder because she was not sure of when exactly those bothersome CEDEF personnel checked up on their boss' family and easier because she would have more chances to capture and/or eliminate her targets. She was aware of the consequences of her actions but in all honesty, she was not doing it because of a personal vendetta against the Young Lion. It was just that a girl had to eat and, despite her threats on dissolving her contract, she ran a little too low on money for her tastes. Low-level Hitmen like her did not get to be fussy about the jobs they took up.

She managed a look of pity towards the happy duo she observed. '_As the saying goes, better you than me, kid.'_

* * *

_December 31, (Year Four)  
5:45 p.m.  
Sawada Household, Namimori, Japan_

Tsuna stared at the Gameboy in his hands with such adorable intensity that it would have made his mother coo and smile had she seen it. His father had sent it as a Christmas present and he had spent most of his time figuring out how to use it and play the game it came with. It both frustrated and entertained him, along with the added bonus of being an effective distraction. He needed it, especially since, for some reason, he had grown increasingly restless the past few days.

It did not help that the Feeling constantly warned him about his Watcher, which frankly annoyed him. The person had not done anything for weeks now and his Feeling only made him feel bad.

He disliked bad feelings so he ignored it for the most part.

The brunet forcibly returned his attention to his game. He actually quite liked the story and the appearances of the "people" there and their "Pokémon", even if they were horribly pixelated. His Mama managed to explain what pixels were by comparing them to his drawings. Pixels were to graphics what dots were to his drawings; at least, that was how he understood it. He would stick to drawing instead of the confusing computerized game graphics, though, even if they were pretty. They sounded too complicated to make.

He had just challenged another trainer so his starter could level up when Nana called out to him.

"Tsu-kun! Put Papa's new gift away and get dressed!"

"Aww. Why can't I bring it? And why can't I go out like this?" He whined as he gestured to the comfortable lounge clothes and sweater that he wore.

He heard his mother climb up the stairs. "You can't bring it because we're going to enjoy the New Year's Festival and I don't want you distracted with your new toy. And your clothes aren't fit for the celebration," Nana explained and she entered her son's room with little fanfare. It did not matter though, for the young boy's jaw dropped to the floor all the same as his already considerably large eyes widened even further in surprise. Nana, upon seeing her son's reaction, unfolded her fan and giggled behind it. She twirled to show off her new kimono. "Like it?"

Tsuna bobbed his head up and down rapidly. "It's so pretty! Can I wear one too?"

She hid a giggle at the image her son's words brought forth. "You'll look very cute I'm sure, but maybe some other time. Just wear what I bought you the other day for now, okay?"

He pouted. "Fine. I dunno how to put it on though."

"I'll help. Now, get up and take it out from wherever you placed it. You can wear your sweater over it though, it's pretty cold outside."

"Will we see Oniichan there?"

Nana's smile dimmed. "Oh, no, Tsu-kun. They're on a trip to visit Amaya-san's parents, remember?"

Tsuna tilted his head to the side. "But Oniichan said his Jiisan and Baasan aren't around anymore." His straightened his head as his face scrunched up. "And I've never seen my Jiisan and Baasan. Are Mama's Papa and Mama not around anymore too?"

An odd look crossed the woman's face as she threaded her hand through the boy's soft, spiky hair. "I'll tell you more about your Ojiisan and Obaasan some other time, okay? Just get dressed for now."

"… Hai." He wisely decided to stay silent. He was not entirely sure what the odd look meant and he did not know what to feel about it. His mother smiled at him but she looked anything but happy.

What was it about his grandparents that caused such a strange expression?

* * *

_6:00 p.m.  
Namimori New Year Festival Grounds_

Tsuna was in awe of the sights that surrounded him. The beautiful lanterns hung tastefully around the festival grounds and their colours lit up the stands filled with various merchandise and goods, edible or otherwise. Some people even still built and/or set up more stands. The dusky sun cast a bright orange tint to everything, which caused the brighter lit areas to appear as though fire encased them while the dimly lit places simply, yet no less enchantingly, glowed serenely. He could smell cooked or fried food, and the natural aroma mixed with herbs and spices carried along with the smoke made his mouth water. Some ways away, a cheery tune started up, played by unknown street musicians.

Yet even as the brunet faced all of this, he could neither ignore nor distract himself from the insistent twist in his gut and the anxious burn he felt throughout his body. He gripped his mother's hand tightly but Nana only absently registered the increase in pressure, the woman enthralled with what was before her as her son had been only seconds ago. This observation made Tsuna grow even more nervous. He surreptitiously looked around and then felt his blood freeze in his veins and his body turn into stone. The warm fire he usually felt beneath his skin seemed cold all of a sudden.

His eyes met with another pair that had been oddly fixated on them.

It was a woman Tsuna was sure he had never seen before. She was pretty but nothing about her stood out. Actually, everything about her, from her hair to her clothes to the way she held herself, was nondescript. She was the kind person you would overlook, the textbook definition of "just another face in the crowd".

Because of that, Tsuna, despite being unable to put his thoughts into words with his limited vocabulary, felt that something about her was very, very wrong.

She blended in well. Almost _too well_, and it unsettled him. It was as if she _tried_ to make herself look like everyone else and, in the eyes of the little boy, completely and utterly failed because people did not _try_ to be like everyone else. They just… were. Which was _why_ they tried the opposite and did anything they could to make themselves unique.

This was a concept he understood without the need for words, so… why did this person need to try?

The woman smiled at him and he felt sick.

However, the Feeling told him to return the action so he forced his mouth to even though it was weak. Then he ducked his head in a futile attempt to settle his nerves and hold back the tremulous shivers that wracked his body. To others, the smile she gave him would appear to be a hesitant gesture offered by a stranger to a particularly adorable child. To others, the look in her eyes would be full of warmth.

To Tsuna, her smile was more of a predatory smirk. To Tsuna, the eyes full of false warmth hid a dangerous glint that all but screamed to him who this person was and why her presence felt so familiar to him even though he had never met her before today.

'_My Watcher.'_

The Feeling confirmed it with a thrum of resigned apprehension.

* * *

_6:24 p.m._

The family of two had walked aimlessly for about half an hour when his Watcher bumped into them. Tsuna knew it was no accident, that she had done it on purpose, and he tensed minutely the longer she chatted with his mother. He restrained himself from any further reaction and hoped they would finish soon, that the woman would go away. Again. He also preferred she never came back.

Nana ruthlessly and thoroughly crushed his hopes when she happily agreed to his Watcher's offer to show them around.

* * *

_6:56 p.m._

After a while into their impromptu tour Tsuna began to understand, with dread, what exactly his Watcher wanted from them.

It was actually because of his mother's desire to go to a stand and briefly check something out. She was uncertain if she should bring him along but did not want to leave him alone either. His Watcher offered to stay with him while Nana went to look but he protested, rather vehemently, until his mother acquiesced and all three of them went. He did not understand what the stand sold but he mostly saw the things there in the kitchen back at home, a place his mother did not let him enter without her around, so he thought little of it.

What he thought about was how his Watcher looked rather irritated as she glanced at him.

* * *

_7:53 p.m._

Just as Tsuna began to relax, his Watcher attempted the same tactic. The woman brought Nana's attention to another interesting booth and suggested she take some time to look around while she watched over her son since "the poor dear must be exhausted from all the walking". As with before, he shook his head in resolute disagreement and asked that his mother take him along, despite the long line at the booth. He insisted that he did not mind. His Watcher had shot him an annoyed and frustrated glare when he, once again, won the argument before she masked it with indulgent amusement. He did not care much for the glare though, or what the other thought of him, due to one simple yet no less comforting fact.

His Mama had caught the glare the other had briefly directed at him. He now knew that she would be undoubtedly wary of their self-proclaimed "Tour Guide" if she had not been before.

The young Sawada had the utmost confidence his mother would stop his Watcher.

* * *

_8:12 p.m._

His Watcher had finally become impatient. She suggested, pleasantly enough, that she take him to find an empty area to occupy or a table to rest at while Nana bought dinner for her son and herself. When she came back to them, she would buy her own food. He had looked up at his Mama imploringly and the latter had, just as kindly if not more so, replied they could just buy their dinner together and find a place to rest afterwards.

What followed that was a tennis match of courteous refutations and rebuttals as both parties insisted that they did not mind in order to counter the other's proposal. Although, one could not miss the tension that rose between the two women and the troubled fidgets of the child unfortunately caught in the middle.

Eventually, Nana's protective maternal instincts caused whatever patience and politeness she possessed for the other to snap. She told his Watcher that her services were no longer wanted or needed and that she did not want to see her, under any circumstances, anywhere near her child.

Tsuna had an almost smug smile on his face, which faltered at the practically demonic look on his Watcher's face. His body was on edge even when the woman's face blanked and she turned on her heel and walked away without another word. However, he did shortly relax and even managed a smile when his mother asked if he felt all right in her usual concerned voice. They continued then and did not let the incident damper their experience at the festival.

Nevertheless, Tsuna's Feeling told him that was not the last they would see of his Watcher.

* * *

_9:14 p.m._

Tsuna, in spite of his best efforts, shook madly in fear. His Watcher was still present, still _watched_ him, and as the minutes went by her oppressive presence directed at him and his mother grew more suffocating. He held Nana's hand tighter and a part of him idly wondered why she could not feel it and he could, almost intimately so. However, most of his attention was preoccupied with his senses so he could pinpoint the exact location of his Watcher. The woman was too good, she blended in too well with the crowd. Together with the suffocating aura, he could not concentrate enough to filter _her_ out from _them_. She could be anywhere and he beat himself up because what use was this stupid Feeling if all it did was make him feel bad and make him think of things that might not even be _true_—

Something flared within him and suddenly the only thing on his mind was the sudden urge to, _'Getaway getaway getMamaawayfromhere—'_

"Look Mama!" He blurted out and pointed in a random direction. He simultaneously pulled his mother along with a strength he had not known he possessed.

"Hm? Ah! Such beautiful paintings! I'm not surprised that's what caught your attention, Tsu-kun—"

Tsuna tuned out his mother and let her ramble on. What could possibly make his Feeling act up so violently? He looked behind him—

—and promptly paled.

There, behind the exact spot Sawada Nana's head had been only seconds before, was a wooden pillar that bore a singed hole. The hole was as large as a child's finger and still emitted smoke, which told Tsuna what exactly caused it.

A bullet.

He knew what it was because his mother let him have free reign over the TV while she cleaned. One day, he came across a movie where a man held a gun up and pointed it at someone's head.

(He did not even know what a gun even _was_ at the time.)

The man had clicked the back of the gun and, with no inflection, pulled the trigger. A lead bullet shot out in slow motion before it suddenly sped up and hit the other man right smack in the middle of his forehead. It exited from the back of his head and hit the pillar behind him where it made a singed hole in the wood, one that smoked. At that time, he did not understand what exactly happened. The only thing he knew was that the red stuff that trickled down the hole in the man's forehead oddly fascinated him.

That was, it did, until his mom had come inside the living room and saw what was on the TV. She had scolded him and, after much pleading on his part, reluctantly explained to him what happened in the scene and why it was wrong to watch those kinds of things, let alone do it. Since then he had been suitably cowed and ashamed of his reaction.

Which was why he realized now, as he stared at the bullet hole, the implications of such a thing.

His mother said that people only got rid of people they "didn't like", which was why he always had to be nice to everyone. It was so that they would like him and him and his mother had always been polite to everyone.

Although that was not quite true anymore, was it?

He had no proof, but the only person who could possibly hold ill will towards him and his mother…

… was his Watcher.

His Watcher who could be anyone who surrounded them right now.

His Watcher who only _he_ could somewhat sense.

His Watcher _who had just tried to kill his mother_.

A burning feeling rose up from the pit of his stomach and throughout his limbs. It left a chilling path in its wake and he shook for a wholly different reason.

_'How dare she.'_

Tsuna always knew he was somehow different from others his age. He did not see things the way they did and they did not understand how he saw the world either. He knew, from the little his mother taught to him, that the world was bigger than he could ever be. Instinctively, he knew that there was more to the world than their little town. While others wished to be larger than life, larger than the world, his desires had always been simpler because he never saw the point of being more than what he already was and could be. He was only four years old, there was plenty of time for him to grow up and fulfil his self-appointed goal in life.

His goal to protect his Mama. To keep her happy. It was the least he could do to return what she had given him.

Now, someone threatened to end the life he wished to keep safe.

The conclusion he came to filled him with frightening resignation.

He was the one his Watcher wanted. His Mama stood between him and her. To get to him, his Watcher decided to get rid of his Mama. Mama could not sense the Watcher and the danger she was in like him, and he was not sure how long he could continue to pull her out of harm's way.

His Feeling told him that the danger would not pass until the woman got what she wanted. She wanted something from him. His Watcher did not care if she had to kill to get to him.

His thoughts had reached full circle. The only way he can protect his mother, the only path he could see that would end with her alive and breathing was if he went to his Watcher. Since he did not know exactly where she was, the next best thing to do was to go to some deserted area alone. With a certainty born from both his logical thoughts and the Feeling that supported them, he knew his Watcher would ignore his mother in favour of her true target.

He did not know what she wanted from him. He did not even know if she wanted him dead or alive. However, even though he was only four years old—_'A child, still a child, Mama says I'm too young, too young, haven't lived, need to live, _want to grow up_…!'_—he knew just as his very being screamed for him to that he must protect his most precious.

He ignored his thoughts. He ignored the part of himself that cried for him to live, to survive and save himself because he was still a child and he did not know what he was doing. His Mama did not need a child right now. She needed someone to keep her safe and, since his father was not around, that responsibility fell to him.

_("You protect your Mama now while I'm away, okay, Tuna-fishy?")_

_(A sweet giggle. "When Papa's gone who's my Knight-in-Shining-Armor?"_

"_Me! Sawada Tsunayoshi!"_

"_Hai. My little Hero.")_

He was the only one who stood between his mother and her murderer.

Plan formed and his mind set on his goal, the fire beneath his skin burned him and left him with chilling resolve.

* * *

Sawada Nana thought that, as her son was now four years old, the Festival was something he would appreciate very much. She thought that it would make a nice little tradition they could do together every year. Though she would never admit it to her son, she was actually relieved that the Yamamoto family left town. She knew that if they had stayed for the New Year, her son would insist they spend time with them. It was not as if she had anything against them, it was just that she thought of the New Year as a time for family and her son thought friends and family were the same thing.

Not that she blamed him. It was an easy thing to confuse.

She was also partially right about the Festival. It had been an enjoyable experience for the first half hour until _that woman_ appeared. She should have noticed something was wrong when her son began to fidget but she had just assumed that he felt discomforted that a stranger took notice of them. She thought it prudent to get Tsuna accustomed to greeting strangers since in a little over two years he would begin elementary school.

She only grew wary of the woman when she caught the rather nasty glare she sent her son. She knew that she had a tendency to trust people first, ask questions later. It was how her father raised her. Most of the people she has met so far have called her naïve but it has simply been so ingrained into her that she could not behave in any other way.

However, when it became obvious that the woman constantly attempted to get her son alone, she put her foot down. There were things she could not stand up to but, when it came to the safety of her child, she would face anything.

Therefore, Nana was ever so glad that the stranger left them alone quietly. She did not want to call the police on her for harassment, even if she would have most likely deserved it. They had a much more enjoyable time after that, though she also noticed that Tsu-kun acted quite… odd.

He pulled her this way and that, pointed at things and called for her to look at them but sometimes did not even bother to listen to her comments or to look at them himself. He always appeared to be a little dazed and constantly looked around them, a movement she chalked up to being so entranced by the sights of a new place that he continuously searched for new things to look at. She humoured him and played along; let him do as he wished. He was only a child and such mannerisms were normal for someone his age.

As it had been more than an hour since she last saw the woman, she was completely relaxed and took pleasure at the various things the festival had to offer. That was why, when her son claimed that he was old enough to use the outhouse on his own, she let him go without a fuss. However, all the same, she stayed nearby to look at some souvenirs.

She wondered which one her son would like…

* * *

Tsuna regretted that he lied to his mother but this was something he had to do for her. He crept towards the outhouse, took a quick look inside, and made a face when he realised how incredibly dirty and stinky it was. He glanced around him and noticed his mother was a little ways away but, luckily, a nearby stand had caught her attention. The people around her were the only other ones that could see him and what he was about to do but, as he noticed early on, they were much too preoccupied with themselves to give him any consideration.

He could have grinned at the fact that he successfully escaped from his mother (and a crowd of people no less!). The thought amused him in a way he was not sure of yet. On the other hand, the thought of why he escaped in the first place, where he was going, and what he was off to do filled him with a bad feeling he could not quite name. It was enough to damper his amusement.

With his back to its wooden walls, he circled the outhouse as casually as he could manage and reached the back, which effectively hid him from the crowd.

The festival grounds were set up in an unoccupied lot near Namimori, trees the only thing that separated it from the town itself. To reach the grounds, one had to go through the forest. It was also set up near Namimori Temple for those who wanted to make a trip to the shrine the moment the clock struck midnight to signify the start of the New Year.

Tsuna, unfortunately, was not familiar with this part of the town, but he knew he needed to go to a place far away enough from people so that no one would interfere with his meeting with his Watcher. They would also most likely get hurt if they did. His Watcher did not seem to care who she had to take out and he did not want anyone to get hurt, especially his mother.

He watched the trees before him apprehensively. Although the grounds itself were brightly lit, it was nighttime and the light did not reach beyond the forest line. He looked up and saw the sky filled with stars that twinkled and a moon that shone. He would have to make his way through the forest by moonlight, then. He hoped that it would be enough.

He walked slowly, slid out a small, rectangular leather case from his yukata, and took out the size 10 palette knife inside it. He hid it in his sleeve and returned the case to his yukata. He did not really know what it was for, but the man who sold it said that artists used it and he wanted to own at least one. He had pleased his mother to buy one for him and he felt she had only agreed to because it was rather blunt and he could not really hurt himself or others with it unless he was hit them really hard. He did not plan to hurt anyone though; he just wanted to mark the trees as he made his way through the forest. He did not want to get lost and he did not have any breadcrumbs or stones to mark the path he took, so the palette knife would be of much help to him.

Tsuna was not sure how long he walked as he marked the vegetation around, but it could not have been long since he had barely marked his ninth tree when someone dropped in front of him. He yelped in shock, stumbled backwards and fell on his bum with his arms raised to shield his face. He felt the knife slip inside his sleeve.

There was silence and, when nothing happened, he lowered his arms hesitantly, frightened beyond belief. He knew, despite the limited light, that his Watcher was the one who had suddenly appeared in front of him.

From what little he could see, all she did was look at him curiously.

"Shouldn't kids like you know better than to go off on your own?" She asked rhetorically.

Tsuna remained petrified.

"Well, I guess it doesn't matter. You made my job easier by leaving your troublesome mother," she smiled in dark amusement. "Though I guess she doesn't matter either. If you hadn't left her I would have ensured she left you. Permanently."

His blood chilled at the tone of her voice and the little he could understand from her words. He had been right. She would have killed his mother.

"Wh-Who are you?" He asked quietly, with a shaky voice.

His Watcher was visibly surprised for a moment. "Huh. You know, that's the first time you've talked to me," she commented casually. His words finally seemed to register in her mind and she put on an affronted face. "You don't remember me? I was with you and your mother a few hours ago…"

"No… I-I remember you," he whispered as he stood up unsteadily. He gripped the hems of his sleeves and stared at her feet, for he could not find the courage to look her in the face other than that one instant. "But that's not… _your_ name, is it? Who are you… _really_?"

Tsuna did not know it, but his Watcher had blinked, stunned. Then her eyes narrowed calculatingly. "You know, maybe I was right. You might actually have inherited your Famiglia's damned Hyper Intuition. If that's the case then bringing you to my employer might put him in a good mood. Maybe enough to give me a bonus," she spoke her thoughts aloud, though it seemed it was because she simply enjoyed the sound of her own voice.

Tsuna tried to make sense of the advanced Japanese she used. _'Hyper… Intuition? What's that? And what's a famiria?'_ He shook his head to clear his jumbled thoughts, a motion that caught his Watcher's attention. "Wh-What do you want… from me?"

"From you? Nothing. What I want is simply you."

He gulped. He did not think it was possible but he felt his blood freeze even further. "… Me?" He murmured lowly, so low that the woman, for all her sharper than average hearing, did not manage to catch it.

"You know, I would tell you more, but I've wasted enough time already. I have a deadline to meet," she muttered as she brought out a phone from somewhere on her person. She pressed the keys on it then began to walk towards the boy.

This… was not what Tsuna expected to occur when he and his Watcher were finally alone. All he planned to do was to bring his Watcher's attention away from his mother and to him. He had expected to… to be able to walk away from here and back to the Festival after he gave the other whatever it was she wanted from him.

Now though… Now he knew that, for some reason, she wanted _him_. She was going to take him away.

_'Away from Mama…'_

His mind blanked for a moment as something similar to his Feeling overtook his senses. It roared, blazed right underneath his skin, practically an entirely different entity on its own… and it was angry. Scared.

As his Watcher reached out to grab him (_'—she's on the phone, hit her now, __**hit her now**__ –'_) a detached part of him took note of the palette knife as it slipped out of his sleeve and into his hand.

He swung the knife at his Watcher.

A startled scream brought him back to his senses and he pushed back the conflagration of _angryscaredannoyedfrightened_. He stepped backwards and he looked down at the knife in his hand. It glistened with specks of red underneath the moonlight. Horrified by what he held, he dropped it, and finally looked towards to the person he was sure the scream originated from. His Watcher's eyes were furious as she held her bloody hand, phone forgotten a few feet away from her and evidently thrown aside to stifle the blood.

She walked towards him and screamed, "You little brat!"

Tsuna, still shocked by what he had done, only managed a few steps backwards as the woman approached. Then he hit a tree. With no way to escape, his Watcher grabbed him by his neck and lifted him. He choked as she pinned him to the trunk, at the warm liquid from her hand that he could feel at his throat.

_'Blood...'_ He thought in a daze. _'So that's what... blood smells... like...'_

His Watcher gripped his windpipe tighter and he choked again as some sort of pressure began in his jaw. An indescribable amount of pain the likes of which he had never experienced before travelled up his face and to his eyes as he struggled to breathe. Black spots danced in his vision and he began to panic because he could not breathe anymore no matter how much air he forced into his nose and mouth because it was stuck in his throat—no, it was being blocked—and the air could not get in and he was going to die but he did not want to, not yet, not now, now that he knew he had the ability to escape because the last time he nearly died the fire saved him and he needed it to save him again so he could see his mother before he died and tell her that he loved her and that he did this for her because he did not want her to die and that he was so sorry he died so young and that if someone deserved to die then it was this person who tried to kill her and was trying to kill him—no, he could feel it, she _was_ killing him and he was going to die—

His thoughts cut themselves off when a burning feeling surged from inside him and enveloped his arms and chest. Without any thought at all, he made his trembling arms rise as much as he could and directed his hands towards the woman and just _let go_.

Bright, searing orange flames burst out from his palms and the woman did not even have time to react for the fire had already reached her and caught on her hair, her clothes, and on every part of her body. Hysterical screams ripped themselves from her throat as she patted the places the fire caught but her only reward was that the skin on her hands blistered and turned an angry red colour. She dropped on her knees and lied on her back, rolled on the grassy floor, but even then, the fire continued to burn.

The blaze burned nothing else but her.

Tsuna snapped out of his stupor and turned to run. His foot hit something, and from the light of the flames on his Watcher, he saw that it was his palette knife, still flecked with blood. In a split-second decision, he picked it up and wiped it on his sweater as he ran in the direction he knew he came from. Even though he did not intend to use the knife to hurt others, it helped him far too much already for him to be able to discard it.

The trip back to the festival grounds seemed shorter than the trip away from it as he stumbled through the forest. His heart sped up as he saw light ahead of him and he urged his legs to run faster. He busted through the trees and into the brightly lit area of the New Year festivities, and blinked as his eyes adjusted to the vivid colours. He was glad no one seemed to have noticed the strange boy who had suddenly run out of the forest.

He rubbed his still sore neck and, when he glanced at his hand, realised with terror that he there was still blood on him. Hastily, he took of his sweater and rubbed it furiously against his neck as he walked to the outhouse. He entered it anxiously and ignored the smell, relieved to find a sink and mirror inside. He closed the lid on the toilet to stand on top of it and reach the sink to look at himself in front of the mirror. To his relief, he saw that his sweater was the only one that was bloody. However, just to be safe, the Feeling had him invert it so that no one would see the bloodstains and place it on his back. He wrapped the sweater's arms around his neck. Then, he carefully ran his hands through what little water was available in the sink.

When the door to the outhouse opened, Tsuna jumped so hard that he hit his hand on the faucet. He gave out a pained cry and clutched his hand to his chest. He held back the tears that threatened to spill as everything that happened caught up to him.

He was not even sure what exactly _happened_. For a good majority of the encounter, he ran on instinct and gave no thought to what he was doing. He just did what _felt_ right, which was the exact same thing he had been doing only seconds before. Though he knew that no one would react well if a child appeared unexpectedly, and covered in blood, no less.

So why did he feel so bad when he thought of what happened?

He did the right thing, right? _Right?_

"Tsu-kun?" A cautious voice called out and the door swung open wider. He looked up, eyes wide and fearful.

When he saw who it was, he relaxed, and allowed his tears to fall.

"Mama," he whimpered.

Nana immediately rushed forward and enveloped her son in a hug as she lifted him from where he stood. Tsuna wrapped his tiny arms around his mother's neck and his equally small legs around her stomach. He buried his face into her neck, sniffling as he took in the scent of cooked food and beneath it the usual floral aroma of his mother. His finally relaxed fully and let himself unwind.

"Tsu-kun, what happened?" Nana asked him in concern. "You were in here for an awfully long time…" She sniffed him. "Oh my! You smell horrible. Oh, I knew I shouldn't have let you use this place," she made a face as she stepped out of the makeshift lavatory. "It's so unsanitary. We'll have to give you a good bath when we get home…"

Tsuna made a small sound. The lids of his eyes had already begun to droop. The combination of the sudden loss of adrenaline and the comforting presence of his most precious person allowed his body to, finally, shut down.

"Tsu-kun?"

"… Mama… 'm tired…"

At last, he let his eyes close and allowed himself to sink into blissful darkness.

* * *

_December 31  
10:01 p.m.  
[Location Unknown]_

Wooden chopsticks fell into a bowl of half-finished ramen. Sharp eyes hidden behind circular spectacles zoned in on an ancient artefact. The markings around it, the manner with which it was built, and the shape of the unknown metal that composed it indicated the possibility that it was not made by a human. Amongst the clutter in the back of the shop where the man seemed to find comfort in dining in, this curious instrument was the only object that looked cared-for, though at the same time older than everything else did in the shop. Currently, the markings around it glowed an intensely vivid orange, and the man who possessed the artefact immediately knew that an Earthling had just exuded an incredible amount of Sky Flames.

It was also possible that the Flames the Earthling released contained a ridiculously high quality of Purity, a quality that he had only ever seen among his own kind.

'_Could it be?'_

He rushed towards the object to confirm the direction his thoughts were going. He knew his eagerness would cost him by way of soggy ramen but, if he were right, then it would be very much worth it. After he tinkered with the machinery, it began to dissect the flames it had previously detected and identified other basic, but necessary, information.

To his disappointment, the flames did not come from Italy, as he had hoped, but rather from an obscure town in Japan. He had expected the Flames to come from Aria's child. The woman did not have much long to live, what with the way the Pacifier fed on her flames, so it was prudent that she had a child as soon as possible. Although, his hope was not lost. If Aria would not birth a child then it would not hurt anyone if he checked out the Earthling who emitted such Flames. He would have to determine if the child was a proper candidate to be the Sky Arcobaleno, as that was the only position that held conditions. There were a set of personality traits that they needed to meet.

"Hmm… Namimori, eh? Furthermore, it's a male…" His eyes skimmed over the Flame's properties when he found a piece of information that froze him. He returned to read it once more.

"I-Impossible! This Flame reading… I thought the only one to come from Sepira's line was Aria? So how can it be possible that this child's Flames possesses incredibly similar base properties to her own?" He muttered to himself, incredibly astounded and for the first time in how many centuries intrigued.

'_And that's not all. The Flames are raw, meaning no outward force has influenced its appearance. It's running rampant with virtually no restrictions! This is dangerous if it continues uncontrolled, especially for the child. The way it fluctuates between a positive and negative point shouldn't be possible! The opposing forces will continue to fight within him until one is the winner, which will severely weaken the child and inhibit his potential unless he learns how to control it._

'_This Earthling's Aura is also incredible. In addition to the variations between positive and negative sides, it shifts as well from a hard and soft type. A Harmony element like this is astoundingly rare. I cannot even predict the way his Aura Element could affect his Dying Will Flame. He would have countless possibilities, numerous flexible usages, and many more unforeseen side effects at his fingertips._

'_All the same… this is also very familiar to me, as if it appeared to me in a dream or perhaps it is simply a memory from long ago. Where have I seen this before? The Will behind its activation that constantly supports the Flame Property and Harmonic Element extraordinarily similar to Sepira's, no matter the intent, is so oddly familiar…_

'_Ah, yes… I remember now. That child Sepira brought under her wing. The one she pleaded with me to help due to the unique properties of his Flame. The Earthling that caused her to grow so fond of their kind._

'_I believe she named him… Giotto, was it?'_

* * *

"Right now I am a mixture of very happy and very sad. And I am trying to figure it all out, all these feelings and emotions, and words and thoughts, and what they all mean. Everything I feel is a contradiction of itself, and I do not understand any of it." ~ Unknown

* * *

_**AN: Hullo everyone. I'd just like to announce that school is almost beginning for me, I've got about a week left so I'm really not sure about whether or not I'll be able to update, but I can promise that I'll be working on the chapters. But I'm not going to abandon this fic any time soon.**_

_**On another note, I really appreciate the Reviews, Favorites, and Follows. You guys are awesome, this fandom is awesome, and thanks for the awesome support.**_

_**I'm sorry I haven't been able to reply to all my new Reviewers since it's been really hectic, but I seriously do read them and they always uplift my spirits and inspire me to write some more. So thanks again :)**_

_**\- Sora**_


	8. Aftermath

_**AN: Hi everyone! So this was the previous **_CHAPTER 7_** but, if you look at the previous chapters, I made a lot of edits, even though the story essentially is the same. Hopefully, the edits improve the story's quality. I'll post the new chapter soon!**_

_**Also, enjoy the new portion I added, titled **_"The Yamamoto Family"_**.**_

_**Thank you for your support!**_

**DISCLAIMER is in CHAPTER 1.**

* * *

_Previously…_

_Tsuna, with enhanced senses due to his unlocked Flames, noticed odd people near him and his mother. As they were polite enough, he never called them out, but he suspected they were in league with his father. He also noticed another, more unsettling presence. Things culminate the night before the New Year, during the annual Festival. He meets a woman and, upon realising the danger his mother was in, went out to confront her alone._

_Meanwhile, Kawahira is intrigued by the properties of the Flames his machine sensed. He proceeds to make plans to meet the owner of said Flames._

* * *

_January 1, (Year Five)  
12:00 a.m.  
New Year Festival Grounds, Namimori, Japan_

Tsuna awoke to the sound of fireworks.

His eyes opened slowly and he blinked away the drowsiness that still lingered. Colours danced across his rounded features as the sky above him blazed and popped with vivid sparks. The acrid scent of smoke was like a jolt of caffeine to his senses.

"Tsu-kun?" A worried voice asked. "Oh, thank goodness! I was so worried when you fainted a while ago. Why didn't you tell me you were so tired? And what took you so long in the toilet?"

Tsuna's shoulders tensed as the memories assaulted his mind. His Watcher. The fire, after months of fruitless efforts, finally surged out of his skin and…

… attacked… her…?

He was still confused about that. His fire never hurt him before so why did the woman scream as if she were in agonizing pain? Did something happen to her? Did _he_ make something happen?

Something in his chest twisted at the possibility.

"Tsu-kun?"

Nana's voice caused him to snap out of his half-asleep thoughts and finally take in his surroundings. They sat on the grassy slope of a hill beneath the starry night sky that still exploded with bright lights. Tsuna realised that he laid against his mother's side as she gazed at him in concern. Down the hill and around it were more people, but their gazes were directed towards the spectacle above them. He looked up at the fireworks as well, let the beauty of it calm him, and allowed half-formed ideas of how he could recreate the spectacle in pencil back at home numb his mind.

Nana smiled softly in spite of her concern as she realised that her son was still a little out of it. "The fireworks are really pretty, ne?" She questioned rhetorically as she threaded her fingers through her son's soft hair and massaged his scalp. Tsuna relaxed further at the treatment.

Time passed as the mother and son duo sat there, watched, and soaked in each other's comforting presence. However, despite the complacent atmosphere, the Feeling began to nag at Tsuna. It creeped into the back of his mind and the longer he stayed there, doing nothing, the greater it grew. It became as such that he began to twitch, began to feel his insides twist and his skin turn clammy. He squirmed and finally paid attention to the niggling Feeling. After a moment, he realised what exactly bothered him.

"… Mama?"

"Hm?"

"I-I… I forgot something… back in the s-sink. Can I go get it?" Tsuna requested. He looked up at his mother but curiously did not meet her eyes.

"Sink? You mean back at the outhouse?" Nana blinked when her son nodded and she pursed her lips. "What did you forget?"

"Th…The palette knife you bought me. So can I? Please?" He gave her the best puppy-dog eyes he could manage even with the anxiety he felt.

"Mmm… Okay," she managed to acquiesce uncertainly. She was unable to deny her only child something he wanted. "The outhouse is just on the other side of the Festival Grounds from here anyways. Do you want me to come with you?"

Tsuna shook his head rapidly. "No, no! I'll be fine. I can do it alone."

She was mildly hurt at the adamant rejection but her increased worry that she allowed her four-year-old son to walk around on his own overpowered any other emotion. However, one look at his face and she knew he would not back down from his words. That, and his odd behaviour, only cemented her decision, even though she did not understand what had come over the boy. "Okay, then. But be quick about it, Tsu-kun. The fireworks are almost over and when they are we'll be going back home to get some sleep. We'll visit the temple later today or tomorrow."

'_And anyways, most of the people at the Festival are either watching the fireworks or closing up their stands. Tsu-kun won't get into any trouble walking through it,'_ she thought to reassure herself.

Her son nodded his affirmation, scrambled up to his feet and kissed her on her cheek as he did. She smiled at him as he turned around to walk up the slope of the grassy hill just as another bright firework exploded above them. A sinister shade of red briefly illuminated the separating figures of the small family.

As Tsuna made his way through the Festival Grounds, his hand involuntarily went to the obi wrapped around his waist where he had previously tucked in his palette knife.

It was still there.

(*)

_12:22 a.m.  
Namimori Eastern Forest_

Tsuna thought that there was no difference between the middle of the night and the beginning of it; both were equally dark and foreboding. His feelings once he re-entered the forest where he confronted his Watcher, however, made everything different. Where before he felt resigned yet determined, he now felt apprehensive at the notion he would soon see the aftermath of his actions.

'_The fire couldn't have hurt her… It's never hurt me before… There's something very wrong about all of this…'_

In the distance, the moon still shone and fireworks still exploded in the sky, but in here, both light and sound felt muted. With each step he took, it was as though he walked into another world, one where laughter and lustre were the dream, and shadows and monsters the reality.

It did not take him long to find each of the trees he had marked.

'_Just a quick look,'_ he promised himself. _'Then, I'll run back to Mama, and never look back.'_

A twist in his stomach made him feel as though that were a lie. Still, he continued to walk. The darkness suffocated him and the shades casted on the ground made the path seem endless. How long had he been here?

He jumped and yelped when his foot hit something; the sound of his surprised voice shortly broke the silence before it descended once again. He looked down and saw a phone.

His _Watcher's_ phone.

He bent down and picked it up, weighed it in his hands and turned it this way and that in observation before he flipped it open. Bright, fluorescent light illuminated the screen, which made him blink at the sudden radiance. There was an unsent message on the screen, filled with unfamiliar characters that were too straight and repetitive to be Japanese.

Then, something flickered up ahead and caught his eye. When he squinted and took a few steps closer, he could almost make out something… orange. His curiosity overwhelmed whatever trepidation he might have felt at the time. He stored the phone into the leather pouch where his palette knife was and tucked it back into his obi. Then he moved ahead, and ignored the fact that he moved deeper into the forest than he did before.

The closer he got, the more his surroundings brightened. He could feel a familiar warmth as it seeped into his clothes and heated up his skin, as if a hug enveloped and comforted him. He broke through the trees and entered another clearing, larger than the one before but still small, and at the far end of it was the source of the warmth.

The Flames were beautiful.

The body anything but.

Tsuna felt numb.

The "body" was, in reality, by now nothing more than a pile of charcoal grey ashes, shaped into the figure of a woman. It lay sprawled on the ground, mouth open in a soundless scream and eye sockets as dark and empty as a cavern. The Flames caressed it slowly as though it savoured its fuel. It crackled on and on and on… careless of the fact that it devoured the life of a human being to feed its own existence.

It was grotesque.

It was sick.

Tsuna only felt numb.

He moved forward slowly, almost unconscious of every step he took, until he was right in front of it. With one quivering hand, he reached out to the fire, tense and ready to jerk away at a second's notice.

His hand felt warm, but it did not burn. When he receded the appendage, the fire followed it, and embers licked across his palm and his fingers, like a loyal dog would towards its master.

That was all the confirmation he needed. The fire was his, the body that of his Watcher's.

He bit his lip to cut off the sob that broke through his throat but could do nothing about the heat that built up in his eyes. _It_ stared at him, its empty eye sockets stared at him accusingly, its mouth open and—

His hand seemed to move without his consent again as it began to tug off the sweater wrapped around his neck. With lifeless motions, the brunet laid the sweater over the body's face.

The sweater began to burn too. How curious.

Tsuna's knees gave out and he landed on his backside. He pulled up his legs, wrapped his arms around them in an attempt to halt the tremors, and laid his chin on them. His face did not scrunch up, they remained smooth and still as stone even as his tears fell freely from his eyes, which were wide with shock. Only his lips, that quivered as they mouthed apology after apology, and his body, that shook so painfully, indicated the true force of his misery.

He did not know how long he stayed there. Maybe an hour. Maybe more. The fire before him scorched his skin yet his insides felt as though they lost that same fire. He felt empty of the warmth he had come to rely on.

The only thing he felt was frost.

The only thing he knew was that this… was the aftermath of what he had done.

'_What have I _done_?'_

* * *

**OMNISCIENCE**

**Arc I: Childhood Days**

**Chapter 4: Aftermath**

* * *

"Killing is not so easy as the innocent believe." ~ J.K. Rowling

* * *

_January 3  
10:44 a.m.  
Sawada Household_

Nana bit her lip as she faced the Police Officer and simultaneously kept an eye on her son. Tsu-kun had not moved at all in the five minutes after she had set him down in front of his toys. He had been unresponsive the past few days, but he had still moved occasionally. Now, though, he simply sat and stared at the objects in front of him. It worried her because even though he _looked_ at them she could not help but think that he did not _see_ them. That what he saw was something else entirely…

"Sawada-san," the Officer called out to her gently from his place on the couch across her. "I know you're worried about your son but I need to hear your statement of what happened that night."

"Oh, yes, of course." She was flustered at the fact that she had spaced out but her wariness overshadowed that. She shifted in her seat into a more comfortable position. "I'm so sorry, Kusakabe-san. What… What would you like to know?"

"Anything you can tell me. Perhaps beginning with what your son was doing out in the forest alone?"

Nana chewed on her lip anxiously. "Tsu-kun wanted to go to the outhouse. I didn't see anything wrong with that so I let him go. But when the fireworks ended and he still hadn't come back I…" Her hands shook as she remembered the panic she felt. "I got so worried. I went to the outhouse and when I couldn't find him there I ran all throughout the Festival Grounds calling for him, asking anyone still there if they saw him but—" She shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut as her shoulders shook.

"Sawada-san?" Kusakabe asked in concern.

Neither of them noticed the slightest of tremors in Tsuna's body, as if he felt the same distress as his mother.

Nana took a deep breath and opened her eyes. They immediately searched for her son in the far corner of the room and the sight of him inside their house, safe and sound, reassured her. "I…I'm fine, Kusakabe-san. Where was I?"

"You said you searched everywhere for your son. I assume that was when you decided to call the police?"

"H-Hai. Not long after I explained my situation to them, they had some people searching through the forest near the festival grounds. I followed them, of course. And when we found Tsu…-kun…" Her lower lip wobbled as she swallowed heavily and continued in a sorrowful whisper.

"Th-There wasn't much l-light but when we f-found Tsu-kun… h-he was sitting in front of a _corpse_," she choked out. "I-It was badly b-burnt and i-it _smelled_ and it was _still burning_ a-and Ts-Tsu-kun was just _sitting_ there _in front of it!_" She sobbed and the tears she had held back finally fell from her eyes. She was hysterical. "Oh Kami-sama what if he _saw_ the one who burned whoever that _corpse was_? What if—!" Nana hiccupped and dissolved into heart-breaking cries.

Neither of them noticed Tsuna turn stiff and still, as if his throat had clogged shut and he could no longer breathe.

Kusakabe was silent but sympathetic. He offered his handkerchief to her, which the woman accepted thankfully. He waited for her to calm down as much as she could manage before he spoke.

"Unfortunately, we've hit a dead-end in identifying the body. I was hoping you would know something more that we could work with but it appears you're in the dark about this just as much as we are." The man visibly hesitated. "Has your son…?" He gestured in the boy's direction helplessly.

Nana pressed her lips together and shook her head slowly, morosely. "No. Tsu-kun…" She hiccupped, "hasn't said a word at all since that day…"

"I see," Kusakabe replied gravely.

"You really can't find anything?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. Whoever was behind this was… very thorough," he grimaced.

"How terrible," she murmured, and her soft voice trembled. "Whoever could do such a thing is truly a…" She shakily took in a deep breath and choked back a sob, "a monster."

Neither of them noticed Tsuna flinch, as if his mother's words physically struck him.

"Is… Is that all, Kusakabe-san?"

"Yes. Thank you for your time." The man stood up and Nana followed suit. She offered the handkerchief back to him but the Officer politely declined and stated he had more.

"Sawada-san, if by chance you find out anything more about this case," his eyes flickered over to the child in the corner before they returned to the woman in front of him, "may I request that you tell me immediately?"

"Yes, of course…"

As Nana saw the Police Officer out, Tsuna sat there and stared at his toys blankly. He was tired… He was just _so tired_ of the emotional rollercoaster the past few days had been for him and now, now that he heard that conversation… he just wanted to go back to the time before that night. To the time before he—before he…

He just wanted to feel _happy_ again.

"Monster… huh?"

* * *

"Mama?"

The soft, timid voice jolted Nana out of her thoughts on the conversation she just had with the Policeman. It was a voice she had not heard in what felt like a lifetime. She turned to the only other person in the room hesitantly and, with a voice full of fragile hope, replied with an equally soft, "Tsu-kun?"

Tsuna simply raised his arms up to her and quietly asked, "Up?"

Nana could not have acquiesced faster as she lifted her son and hugged him to her chest tightly. She rambled aloud joyfully, thanked whatever higher being came to mind, thanked anyone at all for the fact that her son finally said something to her after that traumatic day. "Oh Tsu-kun I was so worried I thought you'd never speak again…"

Tsuna only timidly wrapped his arms around his mother. "Sorry for worrying you."

"No Tsu-kun, it's alright, it's not your fault," she reassured him and pulled back to let her eyes roam across his face. She took him in as though it were the first time she could properly see him. "At any rate, what in the world were you doing in the forest in the first place?"

He opened his mouth to reply then suddenly stopped. Just as abruptly, his eyes watered and his lips began to wobble. "I-I don't… remember… Mama..." He whimpered.

Nana deflated when she saw the obvious distress in her son. She brought him back to her in a hug as she rubbed his back soothingly. "Shh, shh… It's okay now, Tsu-kun, it's okay. You're safe now; everything's fine, so you don't have to think about it anymore, okay?"

He buried his face into his mother's neck and she let him as she began to run her fingers through his soft, spiky hair. When he spoke next, Nana did not once think of how his voice was already steady despite how deeply distressed he appeared only a few moments ago, so focused was she on the bliss she felt upon the realisation that she could hear her son's voice once more.

He asked her, "Mama, can people become monsters?"

She blinked. "Eh?"

"I heard you call… whoever did _that_… a monster… but what if it was a person? Can people become monsters?"

Nana pursed her lips. "I should have known you were listening," she mumbled, upset with herself that she let her son listen in on a police interrogation even if he had only been there for her own comfort. When Tsuna said nothing more, she decided to answer his question honestly. "Yes, Tsu-kun. Anyone, even people like you and me, can become monsters."

He was silent for a long while, and just when she began to think he had fallen asleep, he continued the topic. "How?"

"How… what?"

"How do people become monsters?"

She opened her mouth and, once she realised she had no answer, closed it. She struggled with herself to find a good response for a child her son's age and at the same time be as honest as possible with him. Never in her life did she think she would ever talk about something like this with her child, and he was so _young_.

"Mama," Tsuna mumbled, "it's okay if you don't have an answer. It's a stupid question anyways."

"No, Tsu-kun, that's not it and questions are never _stupid_, okay? You ask questions to learn new things and that is never _stupid_. I just…" Nana frowned as she looked around the room. Her eyes finally landed on a medium-sized statuette that depicted three monkeys in a row. Inspiration dawned on her as she remembered the old adage taught to her by her father, one that would help her answer her son's question. She approached the figurine with her son still in her arms.

"Tsu-kun, look."

He turned to look at what his mother wanted him to see and laid his eyes on the statuette. "Monkeys?" He asked in confusion.

"Yes, monkeys," she made a soft noise that was not quite a giggle but still sounded amused. "Do you know what they stand for?"

He shook his head so his mother pointed at each one of them and explained what their actions, frozen in the woodwork, meant. "They're called the 'Three Wise Monkeys'. My Papa, your Ojii-san, taught me about them. The first one is Mizaru-san and he teaches you to 'See No Evil'. The second one is Kikazaru-san and he teaches you to 'Hear No Evil'. The last one is Iwazaru-san and he teaches you to 'Speak No Evil'. Together, their lesson is that people should 'See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil'. Do you understand so far?"

"Un, because Mizaru-san is covering his eyes so he can't see, Kikazaru-san is covering his ears so he can't hear, and Iwazaru-san is covering his mouth so he can't talk."

"Exactly. Now, you asked me how people can become monsters right? Well, these three little monkeys are the answer."

He tilted his head in confusion. "How?"

Nana simply smiled at him. "I guess we should start with the first phrase. 'See No Evil' means exactly as it says. Don't look at evil things, don't watch evil, don't become curious at the evil you see but, most importantly, don't let evil inside you."

"Why not?"

"Well, remember that time you drank rotten milk?"

Tsuna wrinkled his nose but nodded.

"And then you had a really bad tummy-ache later and couldn't leave the toilet for a while?"

He nodded again, face scrunched up in pain at the memory of that day.

"It's the same thing. When you look at things, you absorb it. So when you look at evil, you let it inside you. Then, once something evil is inside you, it's like rotten milk. It has to come out because, if it doesn't, it will hurt you, but when you let out the evil inside you, it can hurt others instead. At the same time, if you leave it inside you, evil might make _you_ hurt others. So Mizaru-san is teaching you to 'See No Evil' so you don't end up doing evil things.

"Kikazaru-san is teaching the same thing with 'Hear No Evil'. When you hear someone say bad things, it sticks with you, and you find yourself needing to get rid of it so you might end up saying evil things about others and end up hurting them. So 'Hear No Evil' teaches you to not 'hear' the bad things so you don't do bad things. Many fights begin because of a rude interaction or more.

"Now, Iwazaru-san's 'Speak No Evil' is a bit different. 'Speak No Evil' is what happens when you 'See No Evil' and 'Hear No Evil', which means if you 'Speak No Evil' then there is no evil inside you. It doesn't just refer to what you say but also to what you do. Never say anything bad against someone else and never do anything bad against others either. That's what the Three Wise Monkeys represent. Do you understand?" Nana asked nervously and she wondered if she managed to explain it properly for someone her son's age.

Tsuna's face scrunched up again, but this time it appeared as though he just tried to understand his mother's words to the best of his ability. "I… understand. But how do people become monsters?"

"Ah, right!" She could have hit herself; she completely forgot what she originally tried to explain. "Tsu-kun, people become monsters because they've seen and heard too much evil. It may be their fault, it may not be, but because they've experienced so much bad things in their lives, they end up doing those bad things as well. I guess you could say that what they've experienced became too much for them and the only way they feel they can… forget, or let all the pain out, is by hurting those around them."

"Seeing evil hurts?" Tsuna asked with painfully wide eyes.

"Yes. No matter what anyone says, evil acts towards others or yourself are painful things to experience. Because of that pain, people do bad things, like hurt others."

"So… So people aren't monsters?" The child asked and he sounded almost desperate.

"No," she answered with some confusion. "No, people can't naturally be monsters."

"Then… Then, what if… What if someone does something bad, and he—_they_ didn't know it was bad, but they've never seen anyone do bad things or hear anyone do bad things. What does that… What does that make them? Are they a… a monster?"

Nana stayed silent and her son tensed as he worried himself out of his mind. He worried that his mother despised him because she realised that _he_ was the _monster_, the monster that_burned that woman to death_. He did not think he would be able to handle that. He felt his eyes burn and when his mother saw that he had teared up, she hastened to speak what was on her mind.

"Tsu-kun, let me be clear with you," she said with uncharacteristic seriousness on her face. "You will never be able to do something bad. Even with what you may have seen that night, even if you may not remember what happened, there is one thing you should never fear about becoming and that is becoming a monster. You should never be afraid of such a thing happening because it will never happen."

"H-How can you be so sure?" Tsuna's voice shook as he hiccupped.

"Because I am Tsu-kun's Mama and I know him best, and I know Tsu-kun is a nice boy who would never hurt anyone intentionally. Monsters wouldn't feel pain when they see evil but Tsu-kun has such a kind and sensitive soul that he feels everything so deeply. He is a nice boy who feels what others feel and someone who can do that is 100% human. So long as they can still do such a thing, they could never be a monster!" She finished passionately. She rubbed noses with her son as she stared into his innocent eyes earnestly. "I know because Tsu-kun is not just my son, but he is Papa's son as well, and your Papa is anything _but_ a monster, and Tsu-kun is very much like his Papa," she smiled at him widely.

Tsuna buried his face into his mother's neck once more, his arms wrapped around her. Nana's smile softened as she returned the embrace.

She did not see how her son's eyes dimmed as he internalized everything his mother said.

'_Papa this, Papa that. Why do you always bring him up? Why do you always say I'm like him?'_ He remembered a tall, blond man with a stupid smile on his face and the feeling of fear as he tossed him and turned him around painfully. _'I'm nothing like him. _Nothing_.'_

'_Maybe I can feel what other people feel. Maybe I feel everything deeply. Maybe.'_

'_And it's true. I did feel hurt when I saw what I did to that woman. But you're wrong about another thing, Mama. I remember that day and I remember that I… _wanted_ to hurt that woman.'_

'_It was intentional, Mama. She tried to hurt you, so I _burned her_. Because I love you, you know? The reason I went there that day… it was to protect you. That's the only reason.'_

'_I was hurt when I saw what I did because I knew that woman must have been in a lot of pain. It was all over her face, you know? But I… I don't think I regret what I did. I know that if I had to do it again then… I would. Over and over again, as many times as it would take, just to make sure you're safe.'_

'_And I've seen and heard evil before, Mama. Remember that man with the gun on TV? He killed that other guy, right? And I killed someone too.'_

'_I did something bad. Something Evil. And I did it intentionally. Just for you. Just to protect you.'_

'_Monsters don't feel pain when Evil is there. I don't feel pain when I think about the fact I killed that woman, because if I hadn't then she would have killed you.'_

'_Humans feel hurt when Evil is there. I feel hurt inside, it hurts that I made her suffer, it hurts when I think about how painful burns are, and I'm sorry that I made her last moments hurt.'_

'_I killed her, even though when I did it I had no idea I was going to kill her. Still, it was something Evil, right? I did something Evil.'_

'_But I regret hurting her. I'm happy she's gone because now you're safe, but I didn't want to hurt her in the first place.'_

'_I feel what both humans and monsters feel. Mama, I feel both.'_

'_So what am I, Mama?'_

Every night since that day, Tsuna slept with an unspoken question in his mind.

'_Mama, am I Evil?'_

* * *

_Yamamoto Household_

Takeshi's restlessness increased and he did not know why. It has been a week since the New Year and not once did he hear anything from Yoshi-kun.

It was rare for them to hang out with each other because of Takeshi's new Baseball hobby. Yoshi-kun was still shy around people and he did not participate in sports all that much, which Takeshi did not mind since the new physical activities left him extremely exhausted most days. Like the I-am-about-to-fall-asleep-on-my-feet kind of exhausted.

Therefore, he really did not mind Yoshi-kun's penchant for silence and serenity at all. He found that he was his one and only friend that he could really relax around and Takeshi really loved those times when they hung out. They did not need to talk much to each other, for some reason just being around each other was always enough. Yoshi-kun always seemed to know what he needed—whether it be that he needed someone to talk with or if he simply needed some peace and quiet to get his energy back—and he could not have been more grateful for the adorable boy's presence in his life.

He could not explain it in words, but when he was with his Baseball friends, he got tired of all the laughing and smiling quickly, but when he was around Yoshi-kun… Well, even if they were not doing anything, he _always_ felt like laughing and smiling with him. Things were always so _easy_ with him.

'_Hang on, maybe that's why I've been so bothered,'_ Takeshi thought. He had not seen Yoshi-kun in a while. When he asked his parents if they could go visit them, they said that something came up and that Nana-san and Yoshi-kun would not see anyone for a while. Nor would they be leave their house anytime soon. He was so confused about that and his parents would not explain anything to him, so he just gave it up as a lost cause. Though it was also because he could see that his questions bothered his parents and he did not want to cause any trouble for them.

Still… Yoshi-kun did not seem like the type of person to stop being friends with someone so suddenly, and for no reason. Nonetheless, why else would he stop hanging out with him?

'_Maybe it's because I haven't been a good friend to him…?'_ He thought to himself and felt his mood deflate. _'Come to think of it, he _did_ say he's always thinking about me… and I _am_ his only friend…'_

Something that absolutely made no sense at all because Yoshi-kun was _nice_, kind, sweet, and just plain old cool. He should have more friends but at the same time Takeshi… Takeshi _liked_ his only friend. It made him feel special.

'_I guess I have to work harder at being friends with him… I'll be sure to when Tousan and Kaasan give the 'Okay' and I can go see him again,'_ he nodded to himself determinedly. _'And I shouldn't be so selfish with him. I'll introduce my other friends to him as soon as possible. That way, we could all have fun together!'_

A soft patter on the rooftop of his home broke him out of his thoughts. When he looked out the window, he saw that it had begun to drizzle, and he felt himself smile a little.

His first thought was, _'Tousan and Kaasan love the rain.'_ His next was a decisive, _'I like it too,'_ and his last thought was an admittance.

'_But I love it even more when the skies are clear.'_

* * *

_January 9  
11:08 p.m.  
[Location Unknown], Italy_

The man called that annoying woman's phone and was promptly pissed that it directly sent him to voice mail. Again.

"Listen you bitch," he cursed her in his slightly accented Japanese, "I don't pay you to lay on your ass and do nothing. It's been more than a week since you promised to deliver the boy to me and you are _trying my patience_," he hissed.

"If you killed the little piece of shit then at least fucking _report_ it to me. If you have then I want you back in Italy immediately, no point in being there if the target's dead. Furthermore, if you don't reply within three days I'm going to assume that _something_ happened and I'll be sending another hitman to either assist you or _finish you off_. Depends on what shit you got yourself into and whether or not you're worth it.

"And don't fucking think I'm bluffing because I've got the backing of the Estraneo. They're planning some pretty big things and they could use some more trash to experiment on. Isn't that a great idea? You know, instead of having you killed I think I'll hand you over to them.

"But if you don't want that to happen, then you better have a damn good reason for ignoring me and you'd better give me good news when your mission is done. If not, well… There's really no loss on my part," he finished coldly and hung up.

The man's companion, who stood beside him, gave him an odd smile with cold blue eyes set in what could have been called handsome features had they not been twisted with cruelty. "Fu… You are quite unforgiving when it comes to your subordinates, aren't you?"

The man shrugged. "If they can't do their job properly, they don't deserve to live," he replied smoothly and then smirked. "The Mafia isn't for pussies."

The other hummed. "Ah, yes, I suppose so… but what makes you, the boss of a fallen Famiglia, any different from those you treat as beneath you?" He mocked.

The man bristled. "Mock me all you want, but you're no better off. You're just a lowly scientist of a dead Famiglia trying to scrape his way back into the scum of society."

Blue eyes narrowed and sharpened as both men attempted to stare each other down. Their eye contact was broken when a group of children, most barely ten years of age, entered the room. Another group, comprised of scientists, followed them. That was when the man noticed that one of the children bore a striking resemblance to the person beside him.

"Hang on, is that kid…"

"Yes, he is mine," the other replied, his tone unaffected and his posture undisturbed from its languid stance.

The man raised a brow and was unwillingly impressed. "You've got balls, I guess. Most Mafia-made men wouldn't even dare to have their children undergo experiments that could cost them their lives."

A twisted smirk appeared on the other's lips. "My son simply happens to be the most compatible with the most dangerous experiment we are planning. It is an honour to have one of my own become part of what could possibly be the resurrection of my Famiglia. And as you said," his eyes turned glacier, "the Mafia isn't for pussies."

Neither of them noticed that a pair of indigo eyes, wide with naivety, had watched them and had listened in on their conversation in curiosity.

* * *

_January 10  
6:08 a.m.  
Sawada Household_

Tsuna's hands barely shook as he listened to the voice mail again. The message was full of vulgar words that made him uncomfortable and the way the man spoke Japanese made the message a lot more difficult to understand, but he got the gist of it.

"—want you back in Italy immediately—"

Italy? Where was Italy? What was "Es-tra-nay-o"? What did he mean by "experiment"? What was all that stuff about handing someone over to them?

As confusing as the whole message was, he was sure of a few things.

One: The man who called either wanted him brought to wherever "Italy" was… or killed.

Two: The message was for his Watcher.

Three: Someone else like his Watcher was coming for him and his Mama.

He played the voice mail again.

"—sending another hitman to—"

When it ended, he flipped the phone shut as he glanced at the clock on his bedside table. It was early but his Mama should be up by now, and he did not want her to see him with a phone or else she would ask where he got it, and he was not confident enough or even ready to lie to his mother again.

He stared at the innocuous object in his hands with mixed emotions. On one hand, it belonged to his Watcher. She had used this phone and probably used it to have similar, disgusting conversations with the man on the other end. Maybe the man even ordered his Mama's elimination to his Watcher over this phone. The thought repulsed him, made him want to throw it far, far away from him, made him want to _destroy_ it in a fit.

On another hand, this was his only proof that _that_ night was real, that he had actually done all that. It was a reminder of what he had done because he wanted to protect his mother, and what he was would do again if he had to. Additionally, it also forewarned him that someone else was coming for him and his mother.

The man said three days. He needed to figure something out within that period. The young boy observed the phone in his hands critically.

'_I'll keep it,'_ he decided. The phone itself had not done anything to him and it _had_ helped him. It was his now and he would take good care of it.

He may have just been a kid but he quickly realised there was little he would not do for his mother. For her safety, for her life… he would do _anything_. He did not like it, he did not want to _kill anyone_… but if it came down to a choice between his mother and the one out to get her… there was no need to hesitate. He would have made his decision without a second thought.

Or rather, it was not a choice at all.

He never wanted this at all but if push came to shove then he was determined to go through with it.

The fire inside him burned with his resolution.

* * *

"Sometimes, I'm the mess. Sometimes, I'm the broom. On the hardest days, I have to be both." ~ Rudy Francisco


	9. A Checker Face and A Cloud

**DISCLAIMER is in CHAPTER 1.**

* * *

_Previously…_

_Tsuna tries to come to terms with the fact that his actions were inherently evil yet done with the best of intentions. Takeshi is worried about Yoshi and resolves to become a better friend. Meanwhile, the man who sent the Hitman after the young Sawada attempts to make contact with said Hitman. Unknown to him, she had been killed, and Tsuna receives his message._

* * *

_January 12, (Year Five)  
9:45 p.m._

The pencil, gripped tightly in a diminutive hand, flew across the paper beneath it frantically. Lines darkened, shades formed, and slowly a picture of black graphite came together on the stark white fibre material. Two-dimensional trees rose up threateningly on the borders of the paper as they created a path that lead to a figure surrounded by darkness. It was a woman and she lay prostate on the ground, face tilted up, and mouth strained open to a horrific degree. Her hair was strewn wildly behind her and her stomach was elevated as if the stretch would relieve her of the pain she—

Tsuna abruptly ceased his feverish sketching. He breathed in deeply and listened intently for any indication that his mother was up. Reassured that he was the only one still awake, he released his breath and returned his attention to his sketch. Then he flipped to the previous pages of his sketchbook.

Childish as they were, they told a story. The first page was full of trees with an unknown light source further inside the forest. Then as each page passed, the trees grew thicker, taller… darker. Then a path opened up and at the end of it was the body of a woman in unmeasurable pain.

The light in Tsuna's eyes dimmed. He traced a finger over the pencil marks and felt exactly how hard he had pressed against the paper. Just a little more pressure and he would have punctured straight through the coarse material.

He thought that, if he gave the images he saw in his mind physical form, they would finally leave him alone in his sleep but…

'_When will the nightmares stop?'_ He despaired. Then he shook the thought away.

He needed to sleep. If the man on his phone meant what he said, then another Watcher would arrive tomorrow.

* * *

**OMNISCIENCE**

**Arc I: Childhood Days**

**Chapter 5: A Checker Face and a Cloud**

* * *

"Everybody's damaged. It's just a question of how badly, and whether you're healing or still bleeding." ~ Angela N. Blount

* * *

A man with a metallic eye mask attached to an iron hat sat in the tree outside the Sawada home. Beneath his left eye was a faded scar and beneath his right was a black-and-white checker tattoo. He wore a dark trench coat, white pants, and checker-patterned gloves and shoes. He sat casually on the branch, one leg bent up while the other dangled beneath him, as he observed the boy inside the house with curious eyes.

Truthfully, when Checker Face arrived in Namimori and discovered that a _murder_ (of all things) had occurred at the time his machine sensed the Sky Flames, he had been ready to pack up and leave. Any Sky with the resolve to kill for the sake of killing would be unsuitable as the next Sky Arcobaleno.

However, experience had him stay and proceed to do what he did best.

He observed.

He watched as the case stumped the police. With a body burnt beyond measure that the slightest touch caused it to crumble, they could not identify who it was. With no identity, they had no suspects. Their only witness was a minor—a four-year-old boy traumatised beyond measure.

Therefore, their solution was to question the townspeople about any missing persons.

That took a total of three days, by which time the murderer would have had ample time to escape. When no new missing persons were reported and no further information came in, the investigation had to be halted and labelled as a cold case with the hopes that the killer really was no longer among them.

Checker Face's own resources, however, were much more extensive, so he managed to get a clearer view of the incident. That the woman was from out of town, and a Japanese-Italian half-breed at that, was an interesting fact on its own. Such a unique ancestry was suspicious, especially when one thought about _why_ someone like that would drop by a quaint town like Namimori. He double-checked and confirmed that, yes, the woman had been Mafia, but that was really none of his concern.

However, her dead body obviously burnt with Sky Flames _definitely_ interested him.

The Flames used were raw, as expected, but were strangely _not_ wild, as he initially thought. They only burned the woman; the rest of her surroundings remained intact. That meant that the owner's Will was strong enough to control the outcome, an amazing feat when one considered the strength of the Flames. However, he had been correct in his assumption that the Flames were _ridiculously_ pure in quality. The proof was the fact that the Flames had reduced the body to ash… the most curious aspect of his discoveries.

Flames released with the intent to destroy did not result in a high level of Purity.

The subsequent Flame Trace he made led him to the Sawada house and he was somewhat surprised to sense Sky Flames within the child. It was rare to find a Flame-Active child not in the Underworld… and what was more curious was the fact that the child already killed in spite of his civilian upbringing. Was he aware…?

He continued to observe.

He had been there, hidden, when the Officer questioned the mother and he saw the child's reactions. He concluded that yes, the boy was aware of what he had done. He felt faint amusement and some sympathy at the woman's attempt at a lesson to comfort her child when clearly she gave the opposite effect, as the supposed "murderer" and thus "monster" was the very boy she held in her arms.

He felt uneasy when the mother and son clung to each other for comfort. The memory of a green-haired woman in a large hat as she protectively cradled a blond child superimposed itself over the scene. It disoriented him but what unsettled him more was how Sawada Tsunayoshi was the spitting image of Giotto, the boy Sepira took in and cared for as her own.

He observed how, over the course of the week, the child's mental state slowly deteriorated until he periodically woke up from recurrent nightmares. How the child would desperately sketch out the memory that replayed in his mind, each one more disturbing than the last until bags formed underneath his eyes and he grew reluctant to rest. He saw how his mother saw all this but could do nothing to stop it as her own attempts at comfort fell short of what the boy needed. He saw how, as each day passed, the boy grew more and more withdrawn.

He observed with mounting astonishment as the child received a message from a man out to kill him. He saw how the child's eyes dimmed and darkened… then suddenly light up with fire and determination. He watched the boy make his way downstairs and walk into the kitchen where his mother was. He watched him initiate a hug and cling tightly to the leg of his mother, who was surprised but smiled down at him with tears in her eyes.

It occurred to him then that perhaps the reason for the Flames' release had been Tsunayoshi's relentless and steadfast desire to _protect_ his mother.

Two days passed and he observed nothing odd in Tsunayoshi's behaviour, even as the threat of another Hitman loomed over him. The boy went out with his mother more often, certainly, but that was most likely because of the protectiveness he felt over the woman. Although, he did not quite act clingy. He was at least able to leave his mother's side for a certain amount of time and walk off a certain distance away, but that was all that had changed.

Then, in the early hours of the third day after Tsunayoshi received the threat, Checker Face felt a hostile presence approach the Sawada home. As stealthy as the Hitman was, no one—with all the experience he had gained from the many millennia he had lived—could hide from him.

However, the Earthling did nothing. It was not his place.

He was only here to observe.

The Hitman, it seemed, intended to simply watch the house as well. He made no further movements and stood there silently.

A moment later, Checker Face tilted his head. For some reason, Tsunayoshi had awoken.

He watched as the boy tumbled out of his bed and landed softly on his floor, his feet covered with socks. The boy rubbed his eyes and looked around, obviously bothered by something. He quietly walked out of his room.

He did not turn on any lights, even as he slowly made his way downstairs. Once he was on the first floor, he turned around and headed for the bathroom at the end of the hall.

'_Strange,'_ Checker Face thought. There was another bathroom on the second floor and he could see no reason for the boy to use that one, specifically.

Then the boy flipped on the bathroom lights and, even from outside, the fact that someone was awake was obvious. The Hitman tensed and then—after a single, suspenseful minute—he moved to enter the house. Checker Face wondered, with some amusement and more intrigue, just how much of this situation was intentional, and how much was accidental. With his presence still hidden by Mist Flames, he moved his vantage point to get a better look at the events that would unfold.

Tsunayoshi stood quietly in the bathroom, his head tilted in the direction of the front door. Although the Hitman was certainly silent enough, the boy evidently expected to hear something so his ears managed to catch even the faintest of sounds his attacker made. It seemed that, once the boy was sure that there _was_ someone there, he realised that it was the Hitman sent for him, as panic appeared on his face. He looked around frantically and Checker Face saw the moment an idea popped into his head, for he looked at the bathroom window as though it were his salvation.

The Hitman had begun to pick the lock on the bathroom. Tsunayoshi, his mind made up, climbed the toilet and unlatched the window. Just as he crawled out into open air, the bathroom door quietly swung upon, and both target and assassin locked eyes with each other.

Then the boy ran and the Hitman hastily turned to escape through the front door and intercept his target's path.

Checker Face moved to keep up with the two as they sprinted through the streets of Namimori, and continued to observe. Tsunayoshi had a head start, and he knew his town better, so there was quite a distance between him and his assailant. Another point in the boy's favour was the fact that the man did not bring out the gun he had with him. It was most likely because he did not want to cause a commotion so early in the morning. However, the Hitman continued to catch up. If the boy did not do something soon, he would overtake him.

The boy turned to an alley and Checker Face raised an eyebrow. That was a dead end.

Then Tsunayoshi surprised him and proved his move was intentional. He jumped on a rope and pulled on it with all of his body weight and just as the Hitman entered the alley a fire escape ladder crashed down on his head. A stray cat yowled at the sound and ran away as Tsunayoshi climbed down the rope, but after that was silence. The boy heaved in gulps of air as his knees shook and he finally fell.

Checker Face was impressed. _'Now, Tsunayoshi-kun… What will you do?'_

He stood up slowly, still exhausted and his nerves made him tremble, but he stood. He timidly approached the downed Hitman and looked him over. Checker Face passed an uninterested gaze over him too and noted the blood on his head. Head wounds bled the most, though, so it probably only looked worse than it actually was.

Tsunayoshi stumbled away and puked. Checker Face blinked. He had lived so long that he had become accustomed to such things. He had forgotten that, what with his extraordinary display, the boy was only a few months older than four years old.

'_Perhaps that contributes to the Purity factor in his Flames?'_

The boy wiped his mouth and move towards the Hitman again. This time, he did not puke, but he still looked sick. He crouched down and searched through the man's pockets. He came across a wallet, a passport, a phone, and then finally… his gun. He stared at it for a long moment. He seemed to want to leave it but after many conflicting emotions crossed his face—an indication of his warring thoughts—he placed it with the other objects he had pilfered.

Then he turned around to puke again. Nothing came out so all he could manage were dry heaves until he cried and his shoulders shook with stifled sobs.

Checker Face continued to observe dispassionately.

When Tsunayoshi managed to collect himself, all he did was gather the items he had taken from the man and place them a good distance away. He looked around and spotted a piece of wood. It was slightly taller than he was lengthwise but thinner width wise. He took it with both of his hands and walked towards the manhole in the alley.

Checker Face felt he knew what the boy planned to do. _'So this is why he went out with his mother constantly for the last two days…'_

It took a long time and many tries, but the boy finally shifted the manhole aside ever so slightly. It took him a longer amount of time to remove it completely and when he did he breathed heavily again, his pyjamas sweaty and grimy. He took a moment to catch his breath then finally turned to the Hitman. He looked at his hands, clenched them into fists, and closed his eyes.

Then Checker Face felt himself swept away by magnificent Sky Flames. They were so young, so sickly-sweet it was almost sour but _Harmony_, the likes of which he had not felt in centuries, enveloped him. Embraced him.

Accepted him.

He inhaled deeply and regained control of himself. The Flames were not enough to ensnare him but it had been enough to entrance him, if only for that smallest second. However, he could attribute that to how young they were. If they were developed and refined over time, when they mature… How much more powerful would they be then?

How much would the Harmony factor downgrade by then?

The smell of ash invaded his nose and broke him from his thoughts. He refocused himself and took in the sight before him.

Tsunayoshi, his hands still alight with pure Sky Flames, pushed the Hitman with all the strength he could muster towards the open manhole. His Flames continued to spread over the man's body and the boy's face, alight in the dark with the bright of his fire, displayed tears as they silently fell from his eyes.

Checker Face tilted his head. He obviously did not want to do this. What made him do so anyways?

He continued to observe him as he pushed the Hitman. With one last shove, the man finally fell into the manhole. There was a splash, yet through the dark of the sewers, one could still see a faint orange light, an indication that even water had not doused the Dying Will Flame.

The Sky Flames disappeared from Tsunayoshi's hands, as did his tears, and he silently proceeded to cover up the manhole. Then he took what he had swiped from his attacker's body and made his way home. Checker Face followed him, still shrouded in Mist Flames.

The boy entered through the window he had used to escape. He locked it, climbed down the toilet, and stared at his figure in the mirror. When he began to strip off his pyjamas, Checker Face returned to the tree in the front yard of the Sawada home.

He thought about it and realised that this would be the first time Tsunayoshi would bathe without his mother.

* * *

Later on in the day, when the sun broke through the horizon to indicate that morning had fully come, Nana awoke. She opened the door to her son's bedroom and smiled when she saw him in his bed, fast asleep and for once, it seemed, peaceful. Unknowing of the events that had occurred earlier in the day, unknowing of what her only son had done, and blissfully ignorant.

However, she was also happy. That much was obvious to anyone who watched her.

'_Perhaps,'_ Checker Face thought, _'that is all that matters to young Tsunayoshi.'_

He observed as the boy smiled, tiny but bright enough, with obvious adoration in his eyes as him and his mother ate breakfast together.

'_A love so pure that it drove him to kill. This world is cruel enough, after all, to make sinners out of saints.'_

He continued to observe as the days passed. He watched as the boy practiced with his Flames, as he tried to find the extent of its power, curious but ever so wary it. He watched as that beautiful flame grew stronger and, even then, it still bent to his Will.

He watched as the nightmares grew into night terrors, as the boy grew weaker by the day.

He watched his resolve turn tainted and the purity of his flames dwindle.

'_Now, now, we can't have that,'_ Checker Face's eyes narrowed. _'It seems to me that you believe killing these people is the only way to protect your mother. I will have to rectify that if I am to keep your Flames pure. After all, I've decided._

'_One day, you will be the Sky Arcobaleno.'_

* * *

_[Location Unknown], Italy_

The man called the phone of the new Hitman he hired and the line would not connect. Again. He cursed. This was the second time this had happened and he was not about to risk a third. It was obvious that the Sawada Family was more protected than initially assumed, and if he tested his luck, they could trace the recent Hitman activity in that area back to him. He was in no position to handle the Vongola, even if it were only the External Advisors, so his revenge on that bastard Young Lion would have to wait.

For now, all he could do was use whatever resources he still had available to him to fund the Estraneo's experiments.

'_Then again… it doesn't have to be _me_ who sends Hitmen after the Young Lion's family.'_ A manic grin formed on his face. _'That bastard has enough enemies. All it would take is a little… information slip of their location.'_

He chuckled darkly to himself and tucked away his phone. Then he made his way back to the observer's platform to see the most recent experiment.

"What'd I miss?" He asked as he entered.

His blue-eyed acquaintance glanced at him briefly before he returned his gaze to the girl restrained on a medical bed. "Nothing. Although, you seem to be in a good mood. Did your new Hitman succeed in his mission?"

"No. He's probably dead."

The other raised an eyebrow. "And you are pleased… why?"

The man scowled and curtly replied, "It's none of your business."

The blue-eyed man sniffed primly. "I suppose not. Though, you should know, we have developed a new experimental concept to create an ideal Hitman for your use."

"Oh? Do tell."

"The idea is to genetically enhance a person to possess the abilities an ideal Hitman would have. Skill, of course, intelligence as well, and we discussed that the ability to have emotions would only be detrimental to a killer—"

"As a killer, yes, but a Hitman still needs to have at least a sense of honour or loyalty so that the one hiring them would trust them to get the job done and not turn on them."

The other frowned thoughtfully. "I suppose… Then, perhaps, it would be best to genetically remove their ability to express emotions? That way, their targets would not see that they are able to appeal to them, and would not bother. It would also serve as intimidation for those who are weak-willed."

"Maybe…"

* * *

_April 25, (Year Five)  
10:52 a.m.  
__Apartment above Takesushi, Yamamoto Household_

"Yoshi-kun!" Takeshi smiled brightly, thrilled beyond belief. "You're here!"

He ignored how his parents shared exasperated looks at his exuberance and how Nana-obachan gave him a small smile. He only had eyes for the shy face of his little friend. He noticed how the smaller boy shifted shyly and slightly frowned at the bags under the other boy's eyes. He looked tired!

Takeshi thought about it then nodded to himself. He moved forward and grabbed his friend's wrist, to which Tsuna looked up at him with confused eyes. The taller boy smiled widely as he pulled him towards the stairs. "Let's go up to my room!"

Tsuna smiled weakly but said nothing and allowed Takeshi to lead the way. Once they reached his room, however, Tsuna was visibly surprised when Takeshi pushed him towards the bed. "Eh? Uh… Oniichan, what's wrong?"

"You look tired!" He answered brightly. "I don't like playing when I'm tired and you always let me rest then so you're going to rest now!"

"Ehh? Um… that's because… I've been practising… but… um…" Tsuna mumbled something unintelligible.

"Hm? What was that?"

"I… I wanted to make it up to you…" He looked away with a bright blush on his face. "I… I haven't played with you for months… and I even missed your birthday yesterday and I forgot to get you a present…" He hung his head in embarrassment. "I'm sorry…"

Takeshi blinked. True, he had been sad that his friend had not been around yesterday, but he was here now! That was what really mattered so instead Takeshi hugged his friend; tight enough that he managed to lift the shorter boy a few inches off the ground. Tsuna squealed and the taller boy laughed at the sound.

"Yoshi-kun really is so cute! Okay, apology accepted, but you know I'm just really happy you're here today!" He set him down on his bed. "As for my birthday present, let's take a nap together! I'm still a little tired from all the Baseball I did yesterday." He felt somewhat annoyed by that. He already played Baseball every other day. Can his friends not invite him to do something else for his birthday?

Tsuna blinked and let out a yawn. He rubbed his eyes. "Y'sure…?"

Somehow, Takeshi's grin grew wider. "Yeah!" He climbed into his bed and his friend scooted aside to make room for him. Tsuna started to snuggle into the pillow, his eyes lidded with exhaustion, as Takeshi moved the blankets to cover their legs. It was not that cold as it was the start of spring, but it was nice to know that if it did get chilly, they could just pull up the blanket.

"G'night…" Tsuna mumbled then promptly dozed off.

Takeshi laughed softly. "It's just morning, silly." Still, he smiled, more gentle than wide like the ones before, but infinitely more warm. He carefully curled around the smaller boy next to him and laid his head beside the other's own. His eyes took in the tired features and limp, but still soft, hair. Even with those, his friend still looked cute. He laid his hand over the other's curled fist.

Takeshi noticed that, ever since Tsuna's birthday party the year before, his friend felt warm. Not as though he had a fever, but… warm. It had always been nice to spend time with him, doing anything, but ever since that day, he noticed that he felt warmer whenever he was with the other boy. It was as though there was a permanent hug around him, one that comforted rather than inhibited.

Takeshi did not know how to turn these feelings into thoughts, however. He just knew that he liked being with his Yoshi-kun.

He laid his forehead on Tsuna's own, closed his eyes, and let the warmth he felt lull him to slumber.

* * *

Hours later, Takeshi woke up next to a sweat-soaked Tsuna, the boy's body swelteringly hot.

"Yoshi-kun…? Yoshi-kun!" He felt his forehead then immediately removed his hand. "You're burning up!" He jumped out of his bed in a panic and burst out of his room. "Kaasan! Tousan! Nana-obachan! Yoshi-kun's sick!"

The adults immediately ran up the stairs, concern on their faces, and Nana was the first to reach her son. When she tried to touch him, she flinched away. Her hands hovered over the boy's body frantically. She wanted to hold him but she could not even touch him. "Tsu-kun? Tsu-kun! Wake up!"

The boy remained unconscious, his eyebrows scrunched in pain. His cheeks had begun to flush red and sweat continued to coat his body, yet he remained motionless.

"Something's wrong. This can't be an ordinary fever!" She bit her lip.

Amaya laid her hand on Nana's shoulder. "We should bring him to the hospital, then, right?" She answered in a soothing voice.

"But… But I can't even touch him. He's burning up so much it feels like he's on fire…!"

"Tsuyoshi, can you carry him to the car? Maybe wrap him up in a blanket?"

"Alright, I can try."

Takeshi watched, all the while incensed that he could do nothing to alleviate the pain his friend felt.

* * *

_11:22 p.m.  
Namimori General Hospital_

Visiting hours were long over although the special circumstances allowed Nana to remain overnight. The doctor in charge of Tsuna simply requested that she alert the hospital staff of any changes in her son's condition. Currently, she laid curled up on the only couch available in the room, her sleep fitful.

At Tsuna's bedside, Checker Face continued to watch over the slumbering boy, his hands folded over his cane as he towered over him. He had been nearby ever since the Sawada and Yamamoto families arrived at the hospital, his presence unnoticed by anyone. After the doctors conducted their diagnosis, when every illness came up inconclusive and when the situation finally stumped every one of them, he had sighed.

He knew that they would not be able to diagnose what Tsunayoshi suffered from; they had neither the tools nor the knowledge to do so. However, he could not afford them to question the oddity of the boy's condition, so he interfered a bit and had the next set of tests they conducted indicate that the boy had experienced a Heat Stroke, one that was bad enough to warrant a trip to the hospital but nothing life threatening. It did not hurt that the treatment for a Heat Stroke was exactly what Tsunayoshi needed to stabilise his body long enough for Checker Face to step in.

Now, he could finally do something to fix this unforeseen circumstance. He conjured up his own chair with his Flames and sat. Then he leaned forward and laid his gloved hand over the boy's forehead.

He had been right when he thought that Tsunayoshi's Flames would be too dangerous if he left them uncontrolled. Already the boy's Flames sought out worthy Elements to bring into his sphere of influence. The Yamamoto boy was a strong Rain, almost in a Flame-Active state because of his continued exposure to Tsunayoshi's presence and recently unlocked Flames. Coupled with the fact that they had close and undisturbed contact with one another for hours, the little Sky's current state was obviously due to attempted Harmonization.

Harmonization was dangerous enough with a strong Sky and a complete set of willing Elements. To do so without knowledge of the procedure and at such a young age was practically suicide. Checker Face could have hit himself (if it were not so beneath him) for not realising what was going on sooner.

Now, with his Mist Flames, he found the fledgling bond between the Sky child and the Rain boy and forcibly broke it. Beneath his hand, Tsunayoshi convulsed once, then his Flames ceded their attack on his body and he relaxed. Luckily, the bond had not been strong enough to harm either one of the children if it were broken and the Harmonization process had only begun so it was easily destructible. It was also fortunate that Checker Face was far too powerful for Tsunayoshi's Flames to ensnare him and so he was able to break it without further consequence.

He sighed and removed his hand. He had come across a troublesome little Sky.

Checker Face waited to see if any more changes would occur with the boy's Flames. There was one instance, near dawn, when the boy's Flames had receded into him so much that his body temperature began to fall. He had to use his Mist Flames once again, this time to coax the Flames out and return the boy to homeostasis.

'_It's Giotto all over again,'_ he frowned. _'We never could figure out what made his Flames recede in such a way, and when he grew up he learned to control it. It seems this boy's Flames behave similarly. Not to mention there's that issue with the dwindling Purity of his Flames…_

'_I wanted to observe him some more before I made contact but if I do nothing now who knows what will happen? I suppose it can't be helped…'_

He stood, dismissed the chair he had conjured, and faded into mist.

* * *

Dawn broke and, with it, Nana awoke. She stretched and yawned before she stood up from the couch and walked over to her son. Timidly, she checked his temperature and her face expressed her relief when she found that she could touch him. She assumed that his fever broke overnight and called a nurse to look him over.

She teared up in relief when the nurse told her that he was on his way to a full recovery.

Once the nurse left, she trailed her fingers through Tsuna's hair and over his peaceful face, then promised to bring him good food to eat for when he awoke. Then she left for home to cook something up, assured that her son was safe. She also made plans to call the Yamamoto Family and tell them the good news.

Minutes after she left, Checker Face reappeared in the boy's hospital room. He conjured up a chair again, sat, and cast an illusion on the room that would subtly suggest to anyone who went near it that they go somewhere else. Then he made himself visible to young Tsunayoshi's eyes alone and used his Mist Flames to wake him up.

The boy woke slowly and he blinked multiple times before his eyes finally focused. There was a faint orange mixed in with the brown of his iris. They roamed the room, disoriented, until they finally landed on the strange man beside him. His body froze and his hands clenched. A touch of fear entered his gaze as he slowly sat up. "Wh-Who are you?"

Checker Face considered the best way to answer. "I am not someone who wishes to harm you or your mother, if that is your concern."

Tsuna blinked, still wary, but less so. "R-Really? Then… where am I?"

"A hospital. Do you know why?"

He bowed his head and mumbled to himself. "I was at… Oniichan's house… and… we took a nap together…"

"What do you remember after that?"

He looked at his hands then clenched and unclenched them. "… Burning. My… fire…"

"Yes," Checker Face softly confirmed. "Your Flames were burning you. I managed to stop them, however. You're safe for now."

Tsuna blinked. "You know about the fire…?"

"Flames, young Tsunayoshi. They are called Flames."

He tilted his head. "How do you know my name? Who are you?" He asked innocently, curiously, and with far too much trust; the way all children did.

The man bowed his head slightly and crossed his right hand to touch his heart. "You may call me Checker Face. As for how I know your name… a doctor told me."

"You're lying."

Checker Face paused and his eyes narrowed at the factual reply. He re-settled himself into his chair. "Pardon?"

"I can tell when people are lying," the boy elaborated, not seriously, but as though it were an inexplicable truth. "What you just said… That was a lie." His eyebrows scrunched together. "Why are you lying to me? Mama said it's bad to lie."

'_This boy…'_ Checker Face thought. He felt more intrigued by the minute. "How were you able to tell?"

"I have a Feeling. It tells me things." His frown deepened. "You're a… a-voy-ding my question. Why did you lie to me? How do you know my name?"

The man stayed silent as he sorted through his thoughts. He should have confirmed it before he approached the boy but the thought had never struck his mind. He had assumed that Giotto's and Tsunayoshi's similarities were a mere coincidence but the presence of a "Feeling" eerily similar to the former's Hyper Intuition was too much. It was entirely possible that this boy was a descendant of the blond. He would have to make a thorough background check of his lineage but for now he needed to fix the situation he brought upon himself. He needed the boy's trust.

"I apologise for lying to you, Tsunayoshi-kun. It's just that I have… methods… of finding out things; methods that I don't really want to share. I hope that's okay with you?"

Tsuna blinked. Thoughtfulness crossed his face. "You're not lying anymore so… I guess that's okay." He smiled shyly even as his eyes remained guarded. His Feeling, although not overly concerned about the situation, still told him to be wary of the man. "So I guess that means you're not a… a doctor, then?"

The corner of the man's mouth lifted. "No. But I am the one who healed you."

The boy's face scrunched up. "I thought doctors healed people."

"Your sickness was not something a doctor could heal. Luckily, I could, but I am no doctor." He crossed his legs. "However, that is not what I came here to talk to you about. Would you mind explaining to me… your reasons for killing that man and woman?"

Tsuna stilled as fear overtook him.

* * *

_Namimori Eastern Forest_

'_I can't believe it,'_ a tiny figure, dressed in red robes with his long hair tied into a braid, thought. _'They managed to catch up even though we switched trains and walked through wooded areas so many times? Just what kind of trouble did you get yourself into, little sister?'_

The sound of a child's coughs grabbed Fon's attention and he looked at his nephew worriedly. "Can you move, Kyōya-kun?"

Grey eyes narrowed at the cursed infant as tiny hands gripped a bright yellow ball tightly. "Of course I can. I'm not… weak…" He staggered on his feet and fell forwards even as his hands stubbornly held onto his ball.

Fon caught him before he could hit the ground. He sighed even as his senses stayed alert for any indication of their hunters. _'It's just as you said, little sister. His spirit is strong but he had been born with too weak of a body. He must despise it.'_

Then he heard the sound of movement from somewhere deep in the forest. They had begun to close in on them.

"It appears they've finally managed to catch up to us," he muttered as he gently laid his nephew against the trunk of a tree. Then Fon nudged his own torso and his animal partner popped his head out of his collar. "Lichi, I need you to check which way is the nearest town."

The monkey nodded obediently and took to the trees.

Kyōya breathed heavily. "What are you… going… to do…? You can't… fight them off… You're just… a… baby…" He winced when he felt what little injuries he had throb throughout his body. Injuries he had sustained when he attempted to fight the people after them.

The Storm Arcobaleno took a deep breath. "Appearances can be deceiving, Kyōya-kun." He readied his position as his eyes darted about and his other senses strained to locate their enemies.

Then, men jumped out of the woods to surround them. There were five in total. Fon took another deep breath and shot forward.

He kicked the man immediately in front of him in the diaphragm and the man choked and clutched his middle as he landed on the ground. Another man crouched down to sweep kick the infant but he simply jumped up and delivered a blow to his temple that knocked him out. A third man moved to kick him out of the air but Fon managed to flip away from the attack. Then he took out a gyōza bun from his sleeve, ate it, and unleashed his own attack on the third man. He convulsed and flailed, rammed into another one of his comrades, and then fainted from the stench. Fon landed on the grass and continued to eat his bun. There were still three enemies left; the first one he attacked had recovered, the hunter the third man had crashed into was already back on his feet, and the fifth man who had made no move against him at all.

Fon finished his bun and took another deep breath. Then he shot attacks at the last three men. It directly hit the first and fourth man and they convulsed. Their bodies, at the infant's direction, ran full force towards each other and they knocked themselves out.

The fifth man had merely plugged his nose. The infant noted this and stared up at him.

Before tensions could rise any further, the man spoke, his Chinese harsh. "Our business is not with you, Fon of the Arcobaleno."

"It becomes my business when you threaten my nephew," he replied calmly.

"That boy does not deserve to live. He is weak and he serves the Triads no purpose. His mother was a fool for letting him live so long when he has failed every test we have given him."

Kyōya gritted his teeth as he tried to rise from where he sat. "You…!"

"Perhaps a deal can be made instead," the infant cut in. "I am quite ready to offer up my services in return for my nephew's life."

The man considered it, a glint in his eyes. "That… is a matter I would have to take up with the Dragon Head."

"And how long would that take?"

He thought about it then answered slowly, "A week at the very least… two, at most."

"Then, in two weeks' time, we shall meet back here, and you will tell me what your Dragon Head proposes we do."

"Will you truly return to bargain with us?"

Fon bowed. "I have spoken it and I stay true to my word."

The man nodded. "Leave, then, and we will meet in two weeks' time. But make no mistake, Fon of the Arcobaleno. Should you not come… our hunt for that boy will continue and you will not be able to stop us, for even you are bound by our laws."

The infant bowed again and, without his back turned to the man, jumped back to where his nephew glowered at the man. He grabbed hold of the boy but Kyōya pushed him away with a scowl.

"I can stand… on my own…" He shakily got up on his legs with some support from the tree and continued to glare hatefully at the man who agreed to let them go… for now.

"Come, Kyōya-kun," Fon said briskly in Japanese as he walked forwards. Kyōya followed him reluctantly and, after one last scowl at their hunter, he turned and did not look back.

They walked at a steady pace for a few moments. The boy coughed here and there but refused to allow his condition to hinder their progress, even as air became increasingly difficult to intake.

"You're… strong…" Kyōya finally spoke through his ragged breaths. _'Even a baby is stronger than me. How much more pathetic can I get?'_ He gnashed his teeth together and felt his eyes tear up. He wiped at them furiously. They were a show of weakness and he did not want to be weak anymore.

Fon glanced at him and could immediately tell where his thoughts were. "You're not weak, Kyōya-kun. In fact, your mother and I agree that you have one of the strongest wills we've ever seen."

"A strong will… doesn't let me fight."

"On the contrary, because you remain standing in spite of everything that has happened to you shows that you are still, in fact, fighting. And that is an impressive feat."

Kyōya scoffed then immediately coughed. It felt like his throat ripped apart at the force of it. He looked at his hand and saw blood. However, when he noticed the concerned glance of his uncle, he clenched his hand into a fist to hide it, and tucked his ball into his side more securely. "I'm fine," he replied hoarsely. "Let's keep walking."

When the infant turned his head away, he discreetly rubbed his hand over his black shorts. He hoped that they would hide the colour.

"If you are… so strong," Kyōya coughed, lighter than before but still painful, "then why did you… let my mother fight… alone… when you could have… fought with her and… defeated them all."

Fon's shoulders, ever so slightly, slumped. His voice softened so much it was nearly unintelligible. "Your mother is stubborn. She made me promise long ago to never interfere in any of her fights and she reminded me of that shortly before we left. Although, when she did that, I knew the real reason was that she wanted me to take you as far away from the Triads as I could." He glanced at his nephew from the corner of his eye. "And you should know, Kyōya-kun, that even had I fought with her… there would still be no guarantee that we would have won with only the two of us." _'Because this cursed body, as strong as it is, also has its limits…'_

Kyōya turned his head away. "I could have fought… with the both of you."

"You would have died," Fon replied softly.

"Both of you… said so… I am strong."

"Yes, but… Kyōya-kun," he sighed. "You are not yet strong enough."

"And is that why you had to 'offer your services' to them in return for my life," he snapped and was instantly reduced to horrible, hacking coughs that made him sink to his knees and elbows. He dropped his ball and it rolled away from him. "Damn it—!" He coughed again and felt a small hand rub his back.

"This is bad," Fon murmured. "You need a hospital…"

Just then, a familiar chatter reached his ears and a red-faced, white monkey burst through the tree leaves above them to land on the infant's head.

"Lichi!"

The monkey gibbered at him and pointed west.

"You found a town? Good job, Lichi! Come, Kyōya-kun. If Lichi has returned this quickly we must be near…!"

The boy beside him collapsed.

"Kyōya-kun…? Kyōya-kun!"

* * *

_Namimori General Hospital_

Tsuna sat and waited. He had told this strange man everything about those two incidents and could not help but feel vulnerable. What would he think of him? He knew what he did was wrong but…

'… _But nothing,'_ he bowed his head. There was no excuse for what he did. He knew what he did, he understood that it was wrong, and that did not matter to him. Even if he wished he had not killed them or made them suffer, he had no other choice. It was to protect his mother and… and him. He had to protect the both of them because no one else would, because his father was not around and he had to be the man of the house.

'_Even if it hurts… even if the nightmares get worse… I'll protect us! I definitely will!'_

Checker Face sighed and Tsuna snapped out of his thoughts to gaze at him somewhat fearfully.

"You really are too kind, Tsunayoshi-kun."

He blinked. "… Eh?"

Tsuna had not expected that at all. He had braced himself, ready to hear the strange man call him a monster but not… kind. There was certainly nothing "kind" about what he had done.

Checker Face did not seem to share his thoughts. He had noted the boy's body language and facial expressions as he told his side of the story and saw the thoughts that went through the boy's head after he spoke. He was sure he had a good grasp on what Tsunayoshi thought about himself and his situation and, really, he was too kind. He had no firm morals yet his desire to protect his mother caused his Hyper Intuition to show him the fastest route to that goal. Now he believed that it was the only route and Checker Face had to set him straight on this matter as soon as possible if he wished to keep the boy's Flames pure.

"Kind…?" Tsuna wondered. "How am I kind…?"

"You've been suffering all this time, right? You haven't been able to tell anyone about your situation and you won't tell your mother because she wouldn't understand what you're going through. Right?"

He nodded reluctantly.

"And still you insist that you will continue to do this to protect her. You don't even want her to acknowledge your efforts; all you want is to keep her happy."

He nodded again, more vigorous this time.

"But do you really think that doing all these things for your mother will make her happy?"

Tsuna froze. His eyes were wide and confused.

Vulnerable.

"But she… doesn't know. And what she doesn't know… won't hurt her…"

"She may not know but that does not mean she cannot see what your actions are doing to you. She cares about you. Your happiness is her happiness, and if you continue to suffer because of this, she will suffer as well."

"But…!" Tsuna protested as he gripped his bedsheets tightly. "I have to protect her…!"

"But you also want to keep her happy. And believe me Tsunayoshi-kun, killing all these people will not make you, or her, happy."

The boy deflated. He wanted to argue further but the strange man made sense, and his Feeling gave him no impression that the other was wrong or that his words were lies. "Then… what do I do? I don't know… what else I can do anymore," he sniffled.

Checker Face conjured a handkerchief and gave it to him. "Now, now, Tsunayoshi-kun," he soothed. "Allow me to tell you this: there is a way to protect your mother without you having to kill."

Tsuna wiped his nose then looked back up at the strange man, hope in his eyes. "Th… There is?"

"Yes, there is." Checker Face's eyes glinted behind his mask. Finally, the root of the problem. "That Feeling you have is what directed you to kill that man and that woman, yes? It told you what you had to do to protect your mother."

He nodded.

"But you don't want to have to kill anymore, yes?"

Another nod.

"You have to keep that in mind when your Feeling tells you to do things. If you don't want to do what it tells you, you have to find another way. And since it's _your_ Feeling, once it understands that you want another solution, it will help you find it. You just have to be clear about what you want."

"I have to be… clear about… what I want?"

"Yes, exactly. You have to continuously ask yourself things such as… hmm… Well, for starters, do you want to kill again?"

Tsuna shook his head furiously.

"But you still want to protect your mother, yes?"

He nodded frantically.

"That is why you always have to keep what you want in mind when you do something, Tsunayoshi-kun. Those are called 'conditions' and if they are not met then you should not go through with the action. Meaning, you need to find another way. And there _are_ other ways to protect your mother other than killing the people after her. You could, for example, go to the police instead of handling the situation yourself."

The boy closed his eyes thoughtfully. Checker Face, personally, felt he had been going around in circles with this conversation. It was much more difficult to persuade a child than he thought.

"I guess… there are other ways…" Tsuna mumbled. "After I knocked that guy out… so, instead of _that_, I could have just brought him to the police…?"

"That would work quite effectively," the man agreed. "See? There are other ways to protect your mother."

"I guess so, but…" His Feeling nudged him and he recalled how his first Watcher had wanted to take him away from his mother, how she had no qualms about killing anyone who got in her way. "What if there's no other way…?"

Checker Face's eyebrows twitched upwards. _'This boy… in some ways he acts his age, in others he is far too advanced. Is this the power of Hyper Intuition?'_ "Well, my only advice for that… is that you should try all your other options first. Killing is far too final so you should only do it when all else has failed."

"But then what should I do now?" Tsuna raised his knees to his chest and clutched his hair with both hands. "I… I _know_ more of them are coming but I can't think of anything. I don't know what to do if a lot of them come after us and I don't want to—!"

The man placed his hand on top of the boy's head. "Calm down, Tsunayoshi-kun. Panicking will not help you think."

The boy bowed his head and took in deep breaths.

Checker Face patted his head once then removed his hand. "If I may make a suggestion…?"

Tsuna raised his head to look at him inquisitively.

"Perhaps you should tell your father about this."

"Papa…? But… he hasn't been around in a while… Mama says he's busy with work and I think she said he's in Italy right now…?"

Checker Face's eyes narrowed behind his mask. _'As I thought. There is no logical reason for Mafiosi to be after civilians, Giotto's blood or not. And the absence of the father was already quite suspicious… Whoever he is, he would have to be informed of this situation, and since I can't do it myself…'_ "Nevertheless, the next time you see him, you should let your father know. I'm sure he'll help you deal with these people."

Tsuna stared at him then nodded slowly. "... Okay. When I see him again, I'll tell him." He fidgeted in his bed. "By the way, Checker Face-san… you called my fire 'Flames', right…? Wh-What do you know about them…?"

As the man opened his mouth to reply, a familiar presence invaded his senses. _'This Flame…! What is the Storm Arcobaleno doing here?'_ He gazed at the boy speculatively but, as he took in the earnest expression, he dismissed the thought that young Tsunayoshi could have attracted the infant. His Flames were strong, yes, but not so strong as to be able to manage such a feat. _'But what a coincidence. A current Arcobaleno is in the same place as a prospective Arcobaleno at the same time. It would be prudent to investigate this further.'_

"Pardon me, Tsunayoshi-kun, but another matter has been brought to my attention. I promise, however, to talk to you about your Flames at another time."

Tsuna appeared taken aback, and more than a little disappointed, but he accepted the man's words easily enough. "Okay. And, uh… thank you for talking to me about all that… stuff, Checker Face-san," he smiled shyly.

Checker Face smiled back thinly and used his Flames to urge the boy back into slumber. Tsuna's eyelids began to droop and he laid back down in his bed, curled up in a foetal position. The man in the iron hat stood and dismissed the chair he had conjured. Then he made his presence nigh undetectable again, removed the illusion on the room, and vanished into mist.

A moment later, Nana peeked inside the room and she wondered to herself why they went to other places in the hospital first before they went here. Then she saw how her son had curled up, still fast asleep, and she let the thought go as she smiled. She closed the door and turned to the Yamamoto Family. Tsuyoshi and Amaya's hands were busy as they restrained their son and ensured he stayed in his seat and did not make too much noise.

"So? How is he?" Amaya asked with a wide smile.

Nana smiled back. "He's asleep. I'm sorry, Takeshi-kun, but I don't think Tsu-kun can see anyone right now."

Takeshi slumped in his seat. "Oh. Okay."

* * *

_Emergency Room_

Checker Face felt, once again, astounded by what he saw. _'This town is just full of surprises. If this keeps going on, I might decide to live here permanently, if only to keep watch over so many prospects.'_

The boy the nurses fussed over, a relation of the Storm Arcobaleno's from what he could see, quite possibly held the strongest Cloud Flames of his generation. He listened in on the conversation between another nurse and a disguised Fon. The obvious lie was where the boy's external injuries had come from; they were clearly from a fight but Fon claimed that it was because the boy's body was weak and he got into (minor) accidents often because of how outgoing he was. The weak body, Checker Face sensed, was the truth. He had already seen as much with one look at the fragile boy. Now the problem was… what internal ailment did he suffer from?

They brought the boy to an examination room where he began to cough up blood. It appeared that he had regained consciousness.

Checker Face tilted his head when he saw the boy's terror at the number of strangers that crowded him. He looked around frantically, no doubt for his uncle, but the nurses kept him down on the bed. They told him to relax as they removed his clothes in order to get the boy into a hospital gown but he continued to struggle. It was fruitless, however, as he could not even push any of the nurses' hands away. It looked as though he could not breathe.

Then he convulsed and puked out a mixture of vomit and blood. The nurses frantically attempted to clean both the boy and the mess.

The man in the iron hat palmed his face. _'Well, it's not like they have the experience necessary to deal with this…'_

Namimori was an average town and, while they had their fair share of accidents, possible life-threatening conditions were not so common. The staff was simply unaccustomed to them. Luckily, they were still professionals, and they managed to get their wits about them quickly enough.

He waited patiently as they diagnosed the boy. He listened as the nurses reported to the emergency room physician that it was possibly a severe case of pneumonia. All the medical personnel present turned anxious at the report. Checker Face immediately understood why.

They were a general hospital in a town where these things did not happen often. It was likely that they were ill equipped to deal with the boy's sickness.

Still, Checker Face had to give them credit. They did what they could but he was sure they all knew that it would be touch-and-go for them. Apologetically, they explained as much to Fon, the boy's guardian. They even recommended that he take the boy to another hospital.

The Storm Arcobaleno, to Checker Face's surprise, politely, if a bit tiredly, refused. He only requested that they do their best and give as high a chance of survival to his nephew as they could.

"Kyōya-kun is strong," he insisted firmly. "He will pull through."

'_But he won't be able to,'_ Checker Face thought. He knew that, without something more to help the boy, he would not survive. He thought about it and an idea formed in his mind.

Truthfully, he cared not if the boy lived or died. He had merely been curious about the presence of one of the Arcobaleno at this hospital. He could leave now and his conscience would not plague him, he knew. He had lived far too long to be affected by the mortality of children—and to him, the world's population were practically children.

However, he could use the boy's, young Kyōya's, condition. Young Tsunayoshi, after all, needed to understand that he could use his Flames as more than just simple fire, and that they did not hurt others if he so willed it.

* * *

_April 26  
4:27 p.m.  
Sawada Tsunayoshi's Hospital Room_

Tsuna felt the side of his head itch and he absently scratched it away. He blinked then squealed in surprise. "Checker Face-san…!"

The man had literally appeared out of thin air!

Checker Face could not help but smirk slightly. "Good afternoon, Tsunayoshi-kun. Did you sleep well?"

The boy smiled happily. "Un! Mama brought me breakfast and even lunch—I had something called Salisbury steak for lunch today—and it was _so_ good! Then my Oniichan came to visit me and we talked a lot. I tried to say sorry because I made him worried but then he told me I should just get better soon so we could play together again and he brought me papers and crayons and pencils so we could draw together and he really liked the pictures I made today!" He took a deep breath and his smile softened. "Back then… I used drawing to try and get rid of my nightmares so I haven't gotten to draw nice pictures. But I think it's because of Checker Face-san that I got to draw nice pictures that make people smile again!"

Checker Face chuckled in reply. "That's good to hear. So, Tsunayoshi-kun, do you still remember what you asked me earlier today?"

"Um…" He thought about it. "My fire—I mean, my 'Flames'… right?"

"Correct. Moreover, do you know why they are called 'Flames' and not 'fire'?"

"Um…" Tsuna shook his head.

"Because, unlike fire, Flames do not always burn."

The boy gazed at him with wide eyes.

"Come with me," Checker Face held out his hand. "I want you to help someone in need. Your Flames can do that."

Tsuna's wide-eyed gaze lowered to his hands where he clenched and unclenched them. He felt his Flames thrum just beneath his skin. "My Flames can… help someone… in need…" He raised his head to look at the man with painful hope. "They… They don't just… hurt people…?"

The man in the iron hat tilted his head and gestured with his outstretched hand. "Come with me."

Tsuna took his hand and felt something foreign, yet warm, wrap around them. Indigo mist covered all his senses and when he next blinked, he stood in a different hospital room, the sound of beeps the only thing that broke the silence.

"Whose room is this?" He asked the man.

He used his cane to point at the hospital bed in the room. However, Tsuna could not see who was in the bed.

"Um…" He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Checker Face-san… I'm too… short…" He pouted as recalled that fact.

The man was silent—as, admittedly, he had just realised that—before he sighed and crouched down to lift the boy. Then he unceremoniously set him down on the hospital bed.

(Of course, he could have used his powers to lift young Tsunayoshi, but he would rather avoid the excitement the abrupt "flight" would cause.)

Tsuna took in the sickly pale visage of the gaunt boy who laid in the hospital bed with a sweat-soaked body. His dark hair had tangled up, he had a split lip, and there was a bruise on his right cheek and over his left eye. The arms over the bedsheets were far too thin for his age and looked incredibly fragile. Every breath he took sounded raspy and haggard, as though the supposedly simple act required great effort. Immediately, Tsuna felt sorry for him.

"What happened?" He asked with sadness and horror. He was not quite sure which one was the dominant emotion.

"He's sick," Checker Face simply answered, "but you can help him."

"You mean… with my Flames?" Tsuna's eyes widened and a tinge of fear entered them. He waved his hands in hysterical protest. "But I… I've never done that before! All my Flames have done so far is… is…"

The man caught the boy's hands in both of his. "Tsunayoshi-kun, you have to trust me on this. You have to get over your fear of your Flames. They are here to help you. You have to trust them."

Tsuna bit his lip. "But…"

"Just try it. Call out your Flames—"

The boy opened his mouth to protest but Checker Face cut him off.

"_Call out_ your Flames, but think about how you just want them to come out. Think about how you want to see them. Don't think about hurting anyone, just call them out."

Tsuna closed his eyes tightly, mostly out of fear, but he decided to trust this man, and he would. He grasped on the warmth within him and pushed it outwards into hands.

When he heard no screams of pain, he hesitantly opened his eyes.

The sight that met him was that of orange fire as they danced across his tiny hands and over the larger checker-gloved hands that held them.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Checker Face murmured. "These Flames are _yours_, Tsunayoshi-kun. And they do not have to hurt anyone."

Tsuna could only nod, full of wonder.

"Now," the man glanced at the sick boy. "I want you to lay your hands over his chest and see for yourself how your Flames can help him."

Tsuna grinned widely then turned so he could face the other boy. His expression morphed into one filled with determination.

'_I want to help him,'_ he thought as he crouched down and gently laid his hands on the other's chest. _'I want to him get better. Please,'_ he pleaded his Flames, _'help him.'_

Orange Flames seeped from his tiny hands. They buried themselves into the sick boy's body until, slowly but surely, they enveloped his whole being, right down to his core. Checker Face held his hand over his eyes as faint orange light turned, not blinding, but impossibly bright, yet still its intrinsic warmth remained. He could almost imagine what the boy's pure Flames did to Kyōya's body together with all the other Elements present only within the Harmony of the Sky.

Storm, to disintegrate the viral infection in his lungs.

Sun, to activate and amplify the boy's weak healing factor.

Lightning, to harden his body's composition and bone structure.

Rain, to tranquilise any other substance within him that would bring him harm.

Mist, to construct what had been broken by the years he had lived with his body in this condition.

Cloud, to propagate his red blood cells in order to resupply him with the blood he lost and finally…

The Sky's Harmony, to bring the entire Elements' work together and return Kyōya to a state of no conflict and no contradictions.

Tsuna felt tired and he removed his hands from the sick boy's chest. He rubbed his eyes and yawned as the light of his Flames faded away. He looked down at the boy and frowned. He looked better, more at peace and his breaths were no longer so ragged, but he still looked far from healed.

"You did a good job, Tsunayoshi-kun," Checker Face praised him.

"Is he healed?" Tsuna asked with a frown.

"Not quite," the man admitted. "But he will get better soon."

"Can I keep helping him like this?" Tsuna asked hopefully.

"Of course," he smiled at the boy. _'I had hoped you would. This is good Flame control practice.'_ "However, keep in mind that once his body temperature rises, you must stop immediately. Too much exposure to your Flames might end up hurting him instead."

"How do I know he's completely healed?"

Checker Face hummed. "That's difficult to say but… quite possibly if he wakes up while you're helping him." _'Exposure to the Sky's Harmony usually tends to make those subject to it drowsy and, well… drunk. If my calculations are correct, with Kyōya's strong Cloud Flames and an improved constitution, he would be able to fight back against a Harmony-induced sleep and actually wake up. Though it's an entirely different story if Tsunayoshi-kun was actively trying to make him sleep…'_ He held out his hand to the boy. "Shall we return to your room, Tsunayoshi-kun?"

Tsuna rubbed his eye with one hand as he took the man's hand with the other. Before he knew it, they were back in his room, and he flopped back down on his bed.

"Hey, Checker Face-san, what room was that boy in?"

"Room 1-0-8," the man replied absently as he searched through his coat. "He's just a few doors down the hall from your room… Ah! Now, Tsunayoshi-kun, before we part, I wish to give you something."

Tsuna sat up, now wide-awake. "You're leaving?" He asked sadly.

"I'm afraid so, little one," Checker Face chuckled.

"Will I see you again?"

"I do not believe so… not for a long time, at least."

"Oh…" He bowed his head glumly. Checker Face, to the boy, was a strange man overall, but he had been kind to him and had taken the time to talk to him. Even though Tsuna barely knew him, he felt close to him. After all, he was the man whom he had told things about himself that he had not even told his mother.

He looked up when he felt gloved hands slip something on his head. He blinked and lifted his own hands to touch it. He felt stretchable cloth rest just over his hairline, hidden by his wild hair and, in the middle of it, just above his forehead, what felt like a rock of some sort.

"A headband…?" He thought aloud.

"Yes, a headband," Checker Face confirmed. "A special headband. It will hide the fact that you have Flames from other people who can sense those things. However, if you actively use your Flames, they will be seen, so keep that in mind."

"Eh…" Tsuna hummed thoughtfully. "So other people can sense Flames? Does that mean they have Flames too?"

"Yes, that is what it means. This way, you will be safe from people who will try to take your Flames away from you."

Brown eyes widened. "People will try to take my Flames away?"

"Yes." The man leaned forward slightly to look carefully into the boy's eyes. "Promise me this, Tsunayoshi-kun. Never let _anyone_ take your Flames away."

Tsuna blinked then nodded. "I promise. Thank you for everything." He frowned slightly. "I-I wish… I want to… I want to pay you back somehow…! You've done so much… _so much_ just to help me…" He trailed off, subdued.

Checker Face smiled as he tipped his hat to the boy. "Do not concern yourself with that, Tsunayoshi-kun. Instead, let's just say that… you owe me one. Expect a favour from me in the future."

* * *

_April 30  
5:50 p.m.  
Kyōya's Hospital Room_

This would be the third time Tsuna has succeeded in entering the boy's room. The first time had been with Checker Face and the second time had been the day after that, quite early in the morning because Tsuna had wanted to see the boy again. He had not been able to enter afterwards because more and more people had begun to check up on the boy. He did not want anyone to see him inside the boy's room because then they might see him use his Flames, and he did not want anyone to take his Flames away. He was glad that his Feeling helped him make sure no one was around before he attempted to sneak in.

Excitedly, he climbed into the other's bed and took a good look at him. This would only be the third time he attempted to use his Flames on the boy and he felt ecstatic because he could now see visible improvements on the other. He actually helped him!

Giddy with happiness, he proceeded to lay his hands on the boy's chest and call out his Flames. He noticed that if he used them too much he ended up tired, so he tried to keep the output down. Slow and steady was better than fast and rough. _'Just like what Mama said!'_ He hummed a small tune under his breath.

"What are you doing?"

The sudden voice made Tsuna freeze. He slowly looked up and locked gazes with a pair of steel-grey eyes.

Immediately, he squealed and jumped off the (formerly) sick boy's bed.

"Wait—!"

The brunet felt his face burn. _'Hieee! I didn't think he'd wake up so soon!'_

In his embarrassment, he had not heard the amazement in Kyōya's voice when he had asked what he had been doing, and that he had sounded frustrated and disappointed when he called out to Tsuna just as he ran away.

* * *

"Once you choose hope, anything's possible." ~ Christopher Reeve


End file.
